Prominent international cricketers, such as Laura Wolvaardt and India’s World Cup star Deepti Sharma, will go under the hammer during the Women’s Premier League auction on Thursday in Delhi. Bidding wars are also anticipated for Kranti Gaud and Shree Charani.
The first-ever mega auction will feature 277 players—194 Indian and 83 overseas—as five teams compete to fill a maximum of 73 spots, comprising 23 overseas and 50 Indian players. The minimum team size is 15, while the maximum is 18.
Indian players will be in great demand following their historic ODI World Cup victory; player of the tournament Deepti Sharma, who was released by UP Warriorz just after the World Cup final, is expected to fetch a big price.
Given their success in India’s winning campaign at the ICC event, it won’t be shocking if young guns like Kranti and Charani match Deepti’s paycheck. The auction also includes Sneh Rana, Renuka Singh, and Harleen Deol.
Leading England spinner Sophie Ecclestone, retired Australian captain Meg Lanning, current Australian captain Alyssa Healy, veteran Sophie Devine of New Zealand, her compatriot Amelia Kerr, and South African captain Wolvaardt are among the major international names up for grabs.
In the ODI World Cup, Wolvaardt was in incredible form, scoring hundreds against England in the semi-final and India in the final.
Lanning is in hot batting form in the WBBL after retiring from international cricket in 2023, and several teams on the auction table will take that into consideration.
Franchises are anticipated to pursue Phoebe Litchfield, an Australian star in the making.
Delhi Capitals have the least amount of money—5.70 crore—going into the auction, while UP Warriorz have the biggest purse—14.5 crore—having retained only one player.
The auction list also includes four associate players: Thipatcha Putthawong (Thailand), Tara Norris (USA), and Theertha Satish and Esha Oza (both UAE).
It is anticipated that the competition would start on January 7.
