WPL: 409 players will be part of the auction, including 246 Indians and 163 foreigners, Harman-Mandhana's base price is Rs 50 lakh

Published by -  Cricketkeedaa (Follow us on -  Twitter)

A total of 1525 players had registered for the Women's IPL auction, out of which 409 players have been shortlisted. Of these, 246 are Indian and 163 are foreign players.  

Harmanpreet, Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry and Sophie have a base price of Rs 50 lakhs. - Photo: Social Media

Expansion

The first edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL) will be held from March 4 to 26 this year. BCCI has issued a press release regarding this. The tournament will be played at two stadiums in Mumbai – Brabourne and DY Patil. A total of 22 matches will be played in these two stadiums.

Actually, after the Women's T20 World Cup, this league is being held at only one place for the comfort of players and coaches. The Women's T20 World Cup tournament will be played in South Africa from February 10 to 26. Soon after this the women's IPL will start. 

At the same time, on February 13, players will be auctioned in Mumbai. A total of 1525 players had registered for the Women's IPL auction, out of which 409 players have been shortlisted. Of these, 246 are Indian and 163 are foreign players. Eight of the 163 overseas players are from Associate countries. Five teams will be seen playing in the Women's Premier League this year. These include the teams of Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Giants, Lucknow Warriors, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals.

202 capped players in auction

Indian women's cricket team - Photo: Social Media

The total number of capped players is 202 out of 409 players, while the number of uncapped players is 199 and eight are from associate countries. Those players who have played Test, ODI or T20 matches for their country come under the capped category. At the same time, a player who has not played a single international match for his country is called uncapped.

The five teams have a maximum of 90 slots available, of which 30 are for overseas players. That is, only a maximum of 90 players will be bid in the auction. This means that a squad can have a maximum of 16 players. Among men, the maximum number of players in a team is 25.

Harmanpreet-Smriti Mandhana for a base price of Rs 50 lakh

Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur - Photo: Social Media

The highest base price of the players is Rs 50 lakhs, in which 24 players have been kept. These include Team India captain Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma and India's Under-19 T20 World Cup winning captain Shefali Verma. Whereas, 13 star overseas players like Ellyse Perry, Sophie Ecclestone, Sophie Devine and Deandra Dottin have placed themselves in the highest bracket of Rs 50 lakh. There are 30 players in the auction list whose base price is Rs 40 lakh. Apart from these, players with a base price of Rs 10 lakh and Rs 30 lakh are included in the auction. A team's purse will have a maximum of Rs 12 crore.

Cost of each franchise

BCCI has got Rs 4669.99 crore from selling five teams of this league, while Rs 951 crore has been earned from selling media rights. With this, the Women's Premier League has become the second largest T20 league in the world after the IPL. Three IPL franchises Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals have also bought teams in the Women's Premier League.

Ahmedabad is the costliest franchise. Adani Sports Line Private Limited, owned by Adani, bought the Ahmedabad franchise for Rs 1289 crore. Reliance Group-owned IndiaWin Sports Pvt Ltd bought the Mumbai franchise for Rs 912.99 crore.

Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd acquired the Bangalore franchise for Rs 901 crore. JSW GMR Cricket Pvt Ltd bought the Delhi franchise for Rs 810 crore. At the same time, Capri Global Holdings Pvt Ltd bought the Lucknow franchise for Rs 757 crore.