Wpl Mega Auction 2026: The fate of many veterans will also be decided in the auction.Image Credit source: PTI
The mega auction of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) is going to take place exactly 25 days after the Indian women’s cricket team won the World Cup for the first time. Thursday 27th November i.e. today in New Delhi, all 5 franchises will give a new look to their squad for the WPL 2026 season. This time the auction is very special because after the start of WPL in 2023, this is going to be the first mega auction of this league, in which all the franchises have retained some players and the squad will be prepared around them. This time, how many players’ luck will shine, how many contenders will enter the auction and how much money each franchise has, all these details are told here.
From 3:30 pm on Thursday in New Delhi WPL auction Will begin. Despite all the expectations and speculations, at present BCCI has not increased the scope of franchises beyond 5, hence this time also only Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bangalore, UP Warriors and Gujarat Giants will participate in the league. All these franchises had participated in the first mega auction of the league and then bought every player. But the real mega auction is this time because now every franchise has retained 2-3 players.
So how many players are trying their luck in the auction this time?
This answer was given recently by WPL. This time a total of 277 players have been selected for the auction. Of these, 194 are Indian players, while 83 are foreign players. Of these foreign players, 4 are from associate countries.
How many slots will be filled in the auction?
If there is a mega auction then maximum players will be bought. After the announcement of retention a few days ago, a total of 73 slots are left in all the franchises. Out of this, there is space for 50 Indian players and 23 foreigners. However, as usual, it is not necessary that all the slots will be filled. Out of these, 5-6 places may remain vacant.
Which team needs the most players?
According to the rules of WPL, any squad can have a maximum of 18 players and a minimum of 15 players. In such a situation, if we look at the retention, UP Warriors need maximum 17 players because the franchise had retained only one player. There cannot be more than 6 foreign players in any squad.
How much money does each franchise have left?
This time in the auction, all the 5 franchises have a total budget of Rs 41.1 crore, from which purchases will be made. The auction purse for each franchise is Rs 15 crores and from this the fees of the retained players are deducted. In such a situation, after the new retention, every franchise has this much money – UP Warriors – 14.50 crores, Gujarat Giants – 9 crores, Royal Challengers Bangalore – 6.15 crores, Mumbai Indians – 5.75 crores and Delhi Capitals – 5.70 crores.
Will RTM option be available?
For the first time in WPL, the option of RTM i.e. ‘Right to Match’ card has been given. That is, if the highest bid is made on a player in the auction but the old team wants to buy him back, then it can buy him back through RTM card by spending money equal to that bid. However, not all franchises have the option of RTM. Gujarat has 3 RTM, Bengaluru has 1 and UP Warriors has 4 RTM cards. Mumbai and Delhi do not have these options because both of them had retained a maximum of 5 players.
Which big players will be kept an eye on in the auction?
If there is a mega auction, there will be more attention on many big players. The biggest name in this is Australian legend Meg Lanning, who was the captain of Delhi Capitals for 3 consecutive seasons, whose base price is Rs 50 lakh. Whereas Deepti Sharma, who was the player of the tournament in India’s World Cup victory, may attract the highest bid. Apart from these, big money can be spent on star players like Laura Woolworth, the highest run scorer in the World Cup, spinner Sophie Eccleston, pacer Renuka Singh, wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy.