The Women’s Premier League auction has concluded, and as expected, newly crowned World Cup MVP Deepti Sharma fetched the highest price. She returned to her old team, UP Warriorz, for ₹3.2 crore. Australia’s Amelia Kerr became the most expensive overseas player, earning ₹3 crore.
Following India’s World Cup triumph, excitement around the WPL has skyrocketed. Of the 276 players in the mega auction, 67 were picked on Thursday, with franchises spending a total of ₹40.8 crore. In a surprising turn, Australia captain Alyssa Healy went unsold. India’s World Cup–winning players Uma Chhetri and Amandeep Kaur, along with several other international stars, also remained unpicked.
The biggest shocks of the auction were Deepti Sharma and Shikha Pandey. Deepti entered with a base price of ₹50 lakh. Delhi initially bought her at that price, but moments later, UP Warriorz used the Right to Match (RTM) card and reclaimed her for ₹3.2 crore after a bidding battle.
Shikha Pandey, whose cricketing future seemed uncertain, entered at a base price of ₹40 lakh and was ultimately bought by UP Warriorz for ₹2.4 crore. India’s World Cup standout batter Pratika Rawal went unsold at first, but was later bought by UP for ₹50 lakh. She may, however, miss the early phase of the tournament.
Deepti made history by becoming the only player to earn over ₹2.5 crore in two consecutive WPL mega auctions. UP Warriorz spent the highest amount in this year’s auction.
