WPL Auction 2023: Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues and other top buys

FirstCricket Staff • February 13, 2023, 23:29:57 IST

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Here are five of the most expensive purchases at the first-ever Women’s Premier League player auction that took place in Mumbai.

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WPL Auction 2023: Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues and other top buys

The inaugural Women’s Premier League (WPL) player auction witnessed cash flow aplenty as multiple crore-rupee deals took place at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex. After the announcement of the five franchises as well as the broadcast rights, the player auction was the one step left for the league before the first ball was bowled. Also Read: Full list of players sold and unsold at the WPL Player Auction Several players bagged top deals along expected lines , with franchises battling it out for stars such as Harmanpreet Kaur, Ellyse Perry, Deepti Sharma, Nat Sciver among others. However, there were also those such as Chamari Athapaththu, Sune Luus and Suzie Bates, all established performers at the international level, who failed to attract any bids. With the first-ever WPL player auction finally coming to an end, we take a look at five of the most expensive purchases at the event: Smriti Mandhana (RCB): Rs 3.4 crore Flamboyant Indian opener Smriti Mandhana was the first player to go under the hammer in the auction earlier on Monday, and she ended up triggering a fierce bidding war between Mumbai Indians, who opened the bid, and Royal Challengers Bangalore. Watch: Mandhana celebrates with Indian team after fetching mega bid at WPL Auction Eventually it was RCB the persisted and secured her services for Rs 3.4 crore, which would remain the highest bid till the end of the auction. Given the fact that she has led Team India in the past and is currently Harmanpreet Kaur’s deputy for the Women in Blue, she should be an easy pick for captaincy for the Royal Challengers. Nat Sciver-Brunt (MI) and Ashleigh Gardner (GG): Rs 3.2 crore England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt, one of the most experienced all-rounders of the modern game, turned out to be the joint second-most expensive player in the WPL auction alongside Australian star Ashleigh Gardner, both fetching Rs 3.2 crore.

.@mipaltan land 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 all-rounder Natalie Sciver for Rs 3.20 Cr. 😎#WPLAuction LIVE on #JioCinema & #Sports18 📺📲#WPL #WPLonJioCinema #WomensPremierLeague pic.twitter.com/9AIU2HjUMA
— JioHotstar Reality (@HotstarReality) February 13, 2023

Sciver-Brunt turned out to be Mumbai Indians’ biggest purchase of the evening, and that is saying something given they got India captain Harmanpreet Kaur on board. MI also made the initial bid for Gardner, who has been terrific with bat and ball both for Australia as well as in the WBBL. The five-time IPL champions however, eventually backed out once Gujarat Giants joined the race, resulting in her becoming the third player to go for more than 3 crore. Deepti Sharma (Rs 2.6 crore, UP Warriorz) Deepti Sharma, who arguably has been India’s most consistent performer over the past one year, was among the players widely expected to finish among the top buys at the end of the auction and that indeed turned out to be the case. Delhi Capitals, who until then hadn’t made a single purchase, opened the bid with Gujarat Giants raising her price. Soon Mumbai Indians entered the fray with GG bowing out, and it became a two-horse race for a while. Fittingly, it was UP Warriorz that made a last-minute entry and secured the Agra-native at Rs 2.6 crore. Jemimah Rodrigues (Rs 2.2 crore, Delhi Capitals) Jemimah Rodrigues has made an emphatic comeback into the Indian lineup ever since she was overlooked for last year’s ODI World Cup, a moment that she has since described as the lowest points of her life, and has made the No 3 position hers again. Given her talent and what she has accomplished for Team India over the years, she was expected to join the crore-club regardless of her recent form.

Let’s goooo 💙❤️ https://t.co/FBNufpkyWZ
— Jemimah Rodrigues (@JemiRodrigues) February 13, 2023

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