Women's Premier League: Key Retentions and Auction Insights for 2024 Season

Key Player Retentions and Releases

Several prominent players from India's World Cup-winning squad, including Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Shafali Verma, are expected to be retained by their franchises ahead of the upcoming Women's Premier League (WPL) season.

Notable Australian players such as Meg Lanning (Delhi Capitals), Alyssa Healy (UP Warriorz), and New Zealand's all-rounder Amelia Kerr (Mumbai Indians) are anticipated to enter the auction pool after being released by their teams. Additionally, Deepti Sharma, who was named the 'Player of the Tournament' at the World Cup and captained UP Warriorz in Healy's absence, is also likely to be let go by her franchise.

Team-wise Likely Retentions

According to reports, the defending champions, Mumbai Indians (MI), and Delhi Capitals (DC) have retained the maximum allowed five players each. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) has kept four players, while Gujarat Giants (GG) has retained two, and UP Warriorz has only one retention. The likely retained players are as follows:

• Delhi Capitals: Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Niki Prasad


• Mumbai Indians: Harmanpreet Kaur, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amanjot Kaur, G Kamalini, Hayley Matthews


• Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil


• Gujarat Giants: Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney


• UP Warriorz: Shweta Sehrawat

WPL Retention Rules and RTM Option

Under the WPL retention guidelines, teams can keep a maximum of three capped Indian players, two overseas players, and two uncapped players. If a franchise wishes to retain five players, at least one must be an uncapped Indian. For the first time, the WPL has introduced the right-to-match (RTM) option, allowing teams to reacquire players who were part of their roster in the previous season.

Auction Purse and RTM Details for Franchises

Each franchise has been allocated an auction purse of Rs 15 crores, with the auction scheduled for November 27 in the national capital. The retention price slabs are as follows:

• Rs 3.5 crore (Player 1)


• Rs 2.5 crore (Player 2)


• Rs 1.75 crore (Player 3)


• Rs 1 crore (Player 4)


• Rs 50 lakh (Player 5)

If a team retains all five players, Rs 9.25 crores will be deducted from their auction purse. The deductions for retaining fewer players are as follows: Rs 8.75 crores for four, Rs 7.75 crores for three, Rs 6 crores for two, and Rs 3.5 crores for one.

Consequently, DC and MI will have Rs 5.75 crores available to enhance their squads, which can comprise 16-18 players, without the option to use RTMs. UP Warriorz, with only Shweta Sehrawat retained, will have the highest purse of Rs 14.5 crores and four RTMs. GG will have three RTMs limited to Indian players and a purse of Rs 9 crores, while RCB, the 2024 champions, will have one RTM and Rs 6.25 crores to spend.