Kochi, Oct 28 Sophie Molineux emerged as the costliest buy at the Women’s Premier League auction here on Wednesday with UP Warriorz shelling out Rs 1.1 crore for the current Australian captain.
UP Warriorz also recruited India all-rounder Sneh Rana for Rs 30 lakh.
Delhi Capitals splurged Rs 75 lakh to rope in the hard-hitting Kiran Navgire, who also attracted bids from two-time WPL winners Mumbai Indians.
The UP Warriorz franchise, which did not have a frontline specialist wicketkeeper last season, also picked up former India wicketkeeper-batter Sushma Verma for Rs 30 lakh.
The Warriorz have emerged as a side with a spin-heavy attack ahead of WPL 2027, considering they already have India’s Deepti Sharma and England’s Sophie Ecclestone in their ranks.
Coming into the auction, the spin-bowling Australian captain Molineux had a base price of Rs 50 lakh.
The Warriorz bolstered their squad further by successfully bidding for experienced Australia all-rounder Grace Harris (Rs 30 lakh).
Gujarat Giants, meanwhile, snapped up young Indian batter G Kamalini for Rs 40 lakh.
Mumbai Indians added Disha Kasat as the first buy of the day for a base price of Rs 10 lakh.
Out-of-favour India pacer Titas Sadhu went unsold in the first round of the auction while former Mumbai Indians spinner Saika Ishaque also met the same fate.
Keeper-batter Taniya Bhatia, and young stumper Uma Chetry also didn’t have any takers.
England’s top order batter Sophia Dunkley, who has played in the past for Gujarat Giants, also went unsold.
But perhaps the biggest surprises in the list of unsold players were Saika Ishaque, who was one of the finds in inaugural WPL in 2023, and Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu.
The two-time champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru made a late bid in the auction to add the multi-skilled Australian Jess Jonassen for Rs 40 lakh, which they completed during the accelerated auction.
For the record, Jonassen is missing out on WBBL due to a hip injury but is expected to be fit by the time WPL commences.
UP Warriorz also added Scotland all-rounder Kathryn Bryce for Rs 10 lakh in the accelerated auction. She became the first player from an Associate Nation to be sold at this auction.
Delhi Capitals bought Scotland’s left-arm spinner Kirstie Gordon for Rs 10 lakh, and also added the 15-year-old all-rounder Uma Kashvi for the same amount.
Gujarat Giants added Ireland all-rounder Orla Prendergast for Rs 30 lakh.
Mumbai Indians also added uncapped Indian players Sanika Chalke, Bharti Rawal, and Latika Inamdar to their squad, all for Rs 10 lakh each.
Kshemal Waingankar, the COO and director of cricket at Capri Sports, the owner of UP Warriorz, gave his point of view for spending a big amount for Molineux.
“I think that just puts us in a good position, whether that’s Sophie and Grace combined to tweak our combinations and decide which combination works best,” Waingankar said.
“Grace brings power to the middle order. Sophie Molineux, obviously, (brings) leadership qualities, an exceptional bowler and obviously fantastic with the team in general. So our thought was her and Sophie Ecclestone together would be a lethal force and again, like I said with Grace, we have the option of switching and seeing how things work,” he added.
Gujarat Giants head coach Michael Klinger said getting Kamalini was a good move for the side.
“We felt Kamalini was the best batter in the auction, the most talented batter, and we were looking for an all-rounder to complement our squad,” he said.
“Orla Prendergast as a seamer all-rounder gives us plenty of options during the season.
“I was lucky enough to work with her at the Welsh Fire in The Hundred this year. She’s a leading player for Ireland, also has good leadership qualities and will be fantastic around the group,” he added.
In the second round of the accelerated auction, RCB added Tejal Hasabanis for Rs 30 lakh, South Africa’s Chloe Tryon for Rs 30 lakh, and Vrinda Dinesh for Rs 10 lakh.
Asha Sobhana went to UP Warriorz for Rs 30 lakh, while the 16-year-old Samaria Raghav was picked up by Gujarat Giants for Rs 10 lakh.
Mumbai Indians added uncapped all-rounder Akshata Bhagat for Rs 10 lakh, and Shweta Sehrawat for Rs 20 lakh.
(PTI News)
