All-rounder Deepti Sharma finished as the highest-paid player in the WPL mega auction’s marquee round, returning to UP Warriorz for ₹3.2 crore through the RTM card after Delhi Capitals made the only opening bid at her base price (₹50 lakh) in New Delhi on Thursday.
Amelia Kerr of New Zealand was the next biggest buy, with Mumbai Indians spending ₹3 crore on her, which was more than half of their total available purse.
All-rounder Shikha Pandey, who hasn’t played for India since 2023, was a surprise buy as the third most expensive acquisition, with UP Warriorz bidding ₹2.4 crore on her.
UP Warriorz, who began the day with the biggest purse and four RTMs (Right to Match), expectedly controlled most of the early action.
They used RTMs to bring back both Deepti and Sophie Ecclestone after Delhi bought the England spinner at ₹85 lakh. They also signed Meg Lanning for ₹1.9 crore after a long bidding war with Delhi.
At the end of the marquee round, the Warriorz had secured three of the eight marquee players and had already used two of their four RTMs.
The round also produced the biggest surprise of the day, with Australia captain Alyssa Healy going unsold. She had been listed at a base price of ₹50 lakh.
Delhi Capitals started by signing South African Laura Wolvaardt for ₹1.1 crore after a short contest with RCB. Gujarat Giants added Renuka Singh for ₹60 lakh and Sophie Devine for ₹2 crore.
The Warriorz also signed Phoebe Litchfield for ₹1.2 crore after a long contest with RCB and retained Kiran Navgire for ₹60 lakh by using their third RTM.
Sree Charani and Chinelle Henry went to Delhi Capitals for ₹1.3 crore each. Gujarat Giants used RTM to retain Bharti Fulmali for ₹70 lakh.
Jan. 9 start
WPL 2026 will run from January 9 to February 5 and will be played across Navi Mumbai and Vadodara. League chairman Jayesh George announced the dates for the fourth season at the start of the auction.
The DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai will start the tournament and host the first leg. The league will then move to the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara where the final will be played on February 5.
This is the first time that the WPL will be played in the January-February window. The first three seasons were played in February-March just before the IPL. This will also be the first time that the WPL will not clash with major international fixtures.
Home and away
Delhi Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal hoped that the tournament would get a longer window to accommodate a home-and-away format.
“Yes, we would love to see the WPL home and away as well. I think this caravan format is okay, but it’s not ideal,” Jindal said. “... I think it is imminent that either one or two new teams will come in at some point. So I’m pretty sure that the BCCI is planning on adding a team, and maybe with that addition, we move home and away.”