The Women’s Premier League (WPL) auction for the inaugural season took place at the Jio World Centre in Mumbai where a total of 448 cricketers went under the hammer.
The five franchises – Mumbai Indians (MI), Delhi Capitals (DC), Gujarat Giants (GG), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and UP Warriorz (UPW) bought 87 players out of 448 cricketers for a sum total of ₹59.50 crore. 269 Indian players and 179 overseas players went under the hammer.
India opener Smriti Mandhana became the first pick in the Women’s Premier League auction history and was bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore for 3.40 crore. She eventually became the most expensive player of WPL Season 1. Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur went to Mumbai Indians at Rs 1.80 crore. Delhi Capitals successfully bid for Jemimah Rodrigues at Rs 2.2 crore. The U-19 T20 World Cup winning captain Shafali Verma got a successful bid of Rs 2 crore by Delhi Capitals.
Among the international players, Australia’s off-spin all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner was bought by Gujarat Giants for Rs 3.20 crore. Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry got Rs 1.70 crore winning bid from RCB. New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine also went to RCB at base price of Rs 50 lakh.
