Royal Challengers Bangalore were the busiest table in the first set as they lapped up three star players in the inaugural Women’s Premier League player auction held at the Jio Convention Centre, Mumbai.
RCB first grabbed India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana for a record Rs 3.4 Crore and followed it up with buying New Zealand captain Sophie Devine for her base price Rs 50 Lakh and Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry for Rs 1.7 Crore.
WPL 2023, auction live: Mandhana and Perry to RCB, Kaur to MI, Rodrigues to DC
The other top buys were Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who went to Mumbai Indians for Rs 1.8 Crore, Australian all-rounder Ash Gardner went to Gujarat Giants for a whopping Rs 3.2 Crore and English spinner Sophie Ecclestone went to UP Warriorz for Rs 1.8 Crore.
Also read: As Smriti Mandhana goes to RCB, reactions in the Indian camp
The second set saw Mumbai Indians go all in for English all-rounder Nat Scriver-Brunt for a massive 3.2 Crore. Meanwhile, Australian all-rounder Tahlia McGrath went to UP Warriorz for Rs 1.4 crore. South African pacer Shabnim Ismail went to the Warriorz fo Rs 1 Crore. Australian batter Beth Mooney went to Gujarat Giants for Rs 2 crore. Mumbai Indians grabbed a steal for Rs 1 Crore when they acquired New Zealand’s spin-bowling all-rounder Amelia Kerr.
More than 400 players are in the final player list and a maximum of 90 slots are available with the five teams, with 30 being slotted for overseas players.
Here’s a look at the players sold in the marquee set:
| Set No. | Player name | Country | Specialty | Base price (in Lakhs) | Sold at | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sophie Devine | New Zealand | All-rounder | 50 | 50L | Royal Challengers Bangalore |
| 1 | Sophie Ecclestone | England | All-rounder | 50 | 1.8Cr | UP Warriorz |
| 1 | Ashleigh Gardner | Australia | All-rounder | 50 | 3.2 Cr | Gujarat Giants |
| 1 | Harmanpreet Kaur | India | All-rounder | 50 | 1.8 Cr | Mumbai Indians |
| 1 | Smriti Mandhana | India | Batter | 50 | 3.4 Cr | Royal Challengers Bangalore |
| 1 | Hayley Matthews | West Indies | All-rounder | 40 | Unsold | |
| 1 | Ellyse Perry | Australia | All-rounder | 50 | 1.7 Cr | Royal Challengers Bangalore |
| 2 | Shabnim Ismail | South Africa | Bowler | 40 | 1 Cr | UP Warriorz |
| 2 | Amelia Kerr | New Zealand | All-rounder | 40 | 1 Cr | Mumbai Indians |
| 2 | Tahlia Mcgrath | Australia | All-rounder | 40 | 1.4 Cr | Gujarat Giants |
| 2 | Beth Mooney | Australia | Wicketkeeper | 40 | 2 Cr | Gujarat Giants |
| 2 | Natalie Sciver | England | All-rounder | 50 | 3.2 Cr | Mumbai Indians |
| 2 | Deepti Sharma | India | All-rounder | 50 | 2.6 Cr | UP Warriorz |
| 2 | Renuka Singh | India | Bowler | 50 | 1.5 Cr | Royal Challengers Bangalore |
Also read:
WPL auction: From Smriti Mandhana to Ellyse Perry, a look at the potential top 10 recruits
Watch: Meet Mallika Sagar, the auctioneer for the Women’s Premier League auction
Watch, WPL auction: Mithali Raj, Mike Hesson talk about strategies, potential bids and more
