WPL 2026 Auction: World Champion Indian Players Sold for ₹22.65 Crore

Mumbai, November 29 (Udaipur Kiran): Out of the 16 players who were part of India’s Women’s ODI World Cup-winning squad, 15 will be seen playing in the upcoming season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL). Six players were already retained by their teams, while nine were sold in Thursday’s auction held in New Delhi. The combined value of these nine players stood at ₹22.65 crore. Only Uma Chhetri remained unsold.

Among the top buys, Deepti Sharma was picked by UP Warriors for ₹3.20 crore, while Shree Charani was sold for ₹1.30 crore to Delhi Capitals. Smriti Mandhana, the most expensive player in WPL history, was retained by Royal Challengers Bengaluru for ₹3.50 crore. She had earlier been bought for ₹3.40 crore in the first season.

Despite the growing popularity of women’s cricket and the success of WPL, the salaries of Indian women cricketers remain far behind their male counterparts in the IPL. The total value of 15 World Cup-winning players together is still less than the ₹27 crore paid to Rishabh Pant alone in the IPL. No woman cricketer has yet crossed the ₹4 crore mark in the WPL.

Key Auction and Retention Details of World Champion Players

Deepti Sharma was retained by UP Warriors for ₹3.20 crore. She was the Player of the Tournament in the World Cup with 22 wickets and 215 runs.

Renuka Singh was bought by Gujarat Giants for ₹60 lakh. She opened the bowling for India in the World Cup.

Kranti Goud was picked by UP Warriors for ₹50 lakh. She took nine wickets in the tournament.

Radha Yadav was bought by Royal Challengers Bengaluru for ₹65 lakh. She took four wickets in three matches.

Shree Charani was retained by Delhi Capitals for ₹1.30 crore. She picked 14 wickets in nine matches.

Arundhati Reddy was bought by RCB for ₹75 lakh. She featured as a substitute fielder in the World Cup.

Pratika Rawal was bought by UP Warriors for ₹50 lakh. She scored 308 runs in seven matches in the group stage.

Harleen Deol was bought by UP Warriors for ₹50 lakh. She scored 169 runs in seven matches.

Sneh Rana was bought by Delhi Capitals for ₹50 lakh. She scored 99 runs and took seven wickets.

Uma Chhetri went unsold with a base price of ₹50 lakh.

Smriti Mandhana was retained by RCB for ₹3.50 crore. She was India’s top run-scorer with 434 runs in nine matches.

Harmanpreet Kaur was retained by Mumbai Indians for ₹2.50 crore. She scored 260 runs and led India to the World Cup title.

Jemimah Rodrigues was retained by Delhi Capitals for ₹2.20 crore. She scored 292 runs, including a semifinal century.

Shafali Verma was retained by Delhi Capitals for ₹2.20 crore. She scored 87 runs in the final.

Richa Ghosh was retained by RCB for ₹2.75 crore. She scored 235 runs at a strike rate of over 133.

Amanjot Kaur was retained by Mumbai Indians for ₹1 crore. She scored 146 runs and took six wickets.

Men’s Players Still Far Ahead in Salary

While Indian women cricketers fetched ₹22.65 crore in total at the WPL auction, this figure remains far below IPL salaries. Rishabh Pant alone was sold for ₹27 crore in the IPL, making him the most expensive player in league history. The total team purse in WPL is ₹15 crore per team, with five teams sharing a total purse of ₹75 crore, while each IPL team has a purse of ₹120 crore.

Fourth Season of WPL from January 9

The fourth season of the Women’s Premier League will be played from January 9 to February 5 at venues in Navi Mumbai and Vadodara. The league began in 2023. Mumbai Indians have won the title twice, while Royal Challengers Bengaluru won in 2024. Delhi Capitals have finished as runners-up in all three seasons.

India won its first-ever Women’s ODI World Cup title on November 2 by defeating South Africa in the final at Navi Mumbai. This was the team’s first ICC title in both ODI and T20 formats.