 "Watch: Smriti Mandhana celebrates with Team India teammates after fetching mega bid at WPL Auction 2023")
India opener Smriti Mandhana - one of the glittering names in women’s cricket - was sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for a whopping Rs 3.4 crore during the maiden Women’s Premier League (WPL) Auction 2023, underway at the JIO Convention Centre in Mumbai.
Mandhana was the first player out of the Marquee 1 set to come under the hammer. The iconic batter entered the auction with a base value of Rs 50 lakh before triggering an intense bidding war between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore. Following the tug of war, finally, the Bangalore-based franchise sealed the deal signing Mandhana as their first cricketer for the inaugural season of the Women’s Indian Premier League.
Mandhana is now in South Africa with the Indian brigade for the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led unit kicked off their journey in the tournament on Sunday with a high-voltage clash against arch-rival Pakistan, which they ultimately won by 7 wickets. However, Mandhana - the vice-captain of the side - missed the match due to an unfortunate finger injury that she picked up during the warm-up match against reigning champions Australia on 6 February. Following their first group-league win, Indian cricketers have been keeping their eyes on the WPL 2023 auction. A clip shared by Jio Cinema on Twitter revealed Mandhana along with other Indian cricketers watching the auction on a television screen at their hotel. When her name appeared on the screen, her teammates broke into celebrations. They went on to cheer for the Mandhana until auctioneer Mallika Sagar confirmed her first WPL team - RCB.
With her great technique and timing, Smriti Mandhana has built her stature as one of the most skillful batters around the globe. Among her number of notable feats, the southpaw holds the record for the fastest T20I half-century by an Indian in women’s cricket. She breached the fifty-run mark in just 23 deliveries during a match against England in the Commonwealth Games 2022. With 2651 runs in 112 appearances, Mandhana is also India’s second-leading run-scorer in women’s T20Is, only behind captain Harmanpreet Kaur. Among other major deals in the WPL 2023 auction, Harmanpreet Kaur was signed by Mumbai Indians for Rs 1.8 crore, while rising star Jemimah Rodrigues joined Delhi Capitals for Rs 2.2 crore, U-19 T20 World Cup-winning captain Shafali Verma also went to the Delhi-based franchise for Rs 2 crore. Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .