Indian all-rounder Deepti Sharma became the most expensive buy in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) mega auction at ₹3.2 crore, and the second-costliest player overall next to only Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB’s) record bid of ₹3.4 crore for Smriti Mandhana in the 2023 auction.
Capri Global Holdings’ UP Warriorz (UPW) exercised their ‘right to match’ option, matching a raised bid from Delhi Capitals (DC) of ₹3.2 crore from the base price of ₹50 lakh to buy back Sharma, who was also named Player of the Tournament during India’s maiden ICC Women’s World Cup victory in November.
Close behind Sharma was Reliance Industries-backed Mumbai Indians’ (MI’s) bid for New Zealand cricketer Amelia Kerr at ₹3 crore. Starting from a base price of ₹50 lakh, MI and UPW battled fiercely, eventually raising the bid to ₹3 crore for Kerr, a leading wicket-keeper last season and a key contributor to MI’s WPL 2025 trophy win.
The mega auction, held on Thursday in New Delhi, saw UPW have the highest funds at ₹14.5 crore, while JSW GMR Cricket’s DC purse had the lowest amount at ₹5.7 crore. The WPL is set to start on January 9 at Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium, with MI entering as the defending champions.
Another all-rounder, Shikha Pandey, who last played for India in 2023, was signed by UPW for ₹2.4 crore from RCB, making her the third-highest-paid player in the auction. Pandey’s opening bid had started at ₹40 lakh.
Adani Sportsline’s Gujarat Giants (GG), entering the auction with ₹9 crore, secured New Zealand all-rounder Sophie Devine for ₹2 crore after a bidding war with DC and RCB. Devine became the fourth most expensive player in Thursday’s auction.
With fewer financial constraints early in the auction, UPW also signed marquee player Meg Lanning, former Australian captain, for ₹1.9 crore, as the fifth expensive player. Lanning has helped her team win two Women’s Cricket World Cups and five ICC Women’s T20 World Cup titles. Like Sharma, her bid was contested by UPW and DC, starting from a base price of ₹50 lakh.
The sixth-highest bids went to Jamaican cricketer Chinelle Henry and India’s Nallapureddy Shree Charani, both signed by DC for ₹1.3 crore each. Their base prices were ₹30 lakh. South African cricketer Laura Wolvaardt, listed as a marquee player, was bought by DC for ₹1.1 crore, outbidding RCB.
The auction began with a surprise as marquee Australian cricketer Alyssa Healy, six-time Women’s T20 World Cup winner, remained unsold. The seventh-costliest player was Phoebe Litchfield, a batter signed by UPW for ₹1.2 crore.
Among Indian players, after Sharma and Charani, the third most expensive was Asha Sobhana, a batter and spinner, bought by UPW for ₹1.1 crore. Before the accelerated auction, GG had ₹5.4 crore left in its purse, followed by UPW at ₹4.65 crore and RCB at ₹3.05 crore.
The auction for the WPL’s fourth season saw 277 players go under the hammer. A total of 19 players were registered in the highest base-price bracket of ₹50 lakh, 11 in the ₹40 lakh bracket, and 88 in the ₹30 lakh bracket, according to WPL’s official website.
