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All-rounder Deepti Sharma, named player of the tournament in India’s recent Women’s World Cup victory, emerged as the most expensive pick at the WPL 2026 auction.
Sharma’s previous franchise UP Warriorz used a right-to-match (RTM) option to match Delhi Capitals’ sole opening bid of 32 million Indian rupees (about $360,000) to buy her back during Thursday’s trading. auction in New Delhi.
The 28-year-old was a key player for India in their maiden success at the Women’s World Cup, finishing as the highest wicket-taker at the tournament with 22 wickets.
Thursday’s bid made Sharma the second most expensive player ever sold at the WPL auction. Indian batsman Smriti Mandhana, bought by Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the WPL 2023 auction for 34 million Indian rupees ($380,000), remains the most expensive player in the league.
New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr was the second most expensive player at the 2026 auction, bought for 30 million rupees ($335,000) by defending champions Mumbai Indians. Kerr, the youngest woman cricketer to score a double century in One Day International cricket, has been playing for the Mumbai franchise since 2023.
All-rounder Shikha Pandey, who has not played for India since 2023, was the third most expensive purchase, with UP Warriorz offering 24 million Indian rupees ($270,000) for her.
But amid the flurry of big-money signings, the biggest surprise of the evening came when Australian captain Alyssa Healy remained unsold. Healy, who played for UP Warriorz last year, was the only one of the eight big players to remain unsold.
A total of five franchises have spent a total of 408 million rupees ($4.5 million) to sign 67 players ahead of the fourth edition of the WPL, the most lucrative T20 competition in women’s cricket.
The WPL 2026 will be played from January 9 to February 5 in the Indian cities of Navi Mumbai and Vadodara. The final will take place two days before India hosts the Men’s T20 World Cup with Sri Lanka.
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