WPL Auction 2024: Annabel Sutherland, Kashvee Gautam break bank

Kasheeve Gautam and Annabel Sutherland were the most expensive buys as the Women’s Premier League (WPL) auction ahead of the second edition of the tournament came to a close on Saturday (December 9) in Mumbai.

The second auction of WPL witnessed bids going as high as two crores for these two players. Apart from Sutherland, uncapped players Gautam and Vrinda Dinesh grabbed the headliners as they were bought for two and 1.3 crores respectively. All the remaining 30 slots the five teams had were filled even as some players didn’t find any takers.

The auction got off to an astonishing start with fan favourites Chamari Athapaththu and Deandra Dottin not finding any bids. 

On the other hand, Sutherland, who had a base price of 40 lakhs INR, was picked up by Delhi Capitals for a whopping two crores. Gujarat Giants went for the young Phoebe Litchfield as she fetched one crore in the auction. 

Danni Wyatt’s services were immediately secured by UP Warriorz at the base price of 30 lakh INR even as teams didn’t make any bids of Athapaththu and Dottin. 

Australian allrounder Georgia Wareham was the next one to be picked as she was signed in by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for 40 lakhs. Gujarat Giants signed Meghna Singh also during this period.

None of the capped wicket-keepers found any takers as Bess Heath, Amy Jones, and Tammy Beaumont were passed on by the teams. Later, Delhi Capitals brought back Bengal’s keeper Aparna Mondal for 10 lakhs despite releasing her before the auction.

The fourth group of capped fast bowlers made the auction come alive with a bidding war for Shabnim Ismail. The South African pacer struck gold with a 1.2 crore INR bid to her name from Mumbai Indians. RCB also purchased Kate Cross during this period for 30 lakhs. In the set of spinners, Ekta Bisht was procured by RCB for 60 lakhs INR.

Vrinda Dinesh, the young batter from Karnataka, was purchased by UP Warriorz for a whopping 1.3 crore after a bidding war. Known for her elegance, Vrinda had a prolific domestic season and some impressive performances for India A.

Bidding wars for Gautam kicked off the eighth set of uncapped allrounders. After a bidding war with UP Warriorz, Giants procured the services of the 20-year-old. In the due process, Gautam became the most expensive uncapped player in the short history of the competition.

Post this, Mumbai Indians acquired Kerala’s Sajana S and left-arm wrist spinner Amandeep Kaur, while UPW signed Mumbai pacer Saima Thakor and Poonam Khemnar.

In the accelerated  auction, Giants quickly re-opened the bidding window and obtained left-arm pacer Lauren Cheatle, Kathryn Bryce, and Mannat Kashyap.

With a final bid for Ashwani Kumar, Delhi Capitals completed their 18-members line-up. Fatima Jaffer and Keerthana B rounded up the Mumbai Indians squad.

Capped India pace-bowling allrounder Simran Dil Bahadur was picked up by RCB along with S Meghana even as Karnataka’s Veda Krishnamurthy went to Gujarat Giants. Sophie Molineux completed RCB’s overseas roster and Giants finalised their side with the inclusion of Goa allrounder Tarannum Pathan.

Although Athapaththu’s omission was the biggest talking point, leg spinners Amanda-Jade Wellington, Alana King and Devika Vaidya didn’t find any takers with the auction coming to a close.

Delhi Capitals: Meg Lanning* (c), Alice Capsey*, Arundhati Reddy, Jemimah Rodrigues, Jess Jonassen*, Laura Harris*, Marizanne Kapp*, , Minnu Mani, Poonam Yadav, Radha Yadav, Shafali Verma, Shikha Pandey, Sneha Deepthi, Taniyaa Bhatia, Titas Sadhu, Annabel Sutherland*, Aparna Mondal, Ashwani Kumari

Gujarat Giants: Beth Mooney* (c), Ashleigh Gardner*, Dayalan Hemalatha, Harleen Deol, Laura Wolvaardt*, Shabnam Shakil, Sneh Rana, Tanuja Kanwer, Phoebe Litchfield*, Meghna Singh, Kashvee Gautam, Priya Mishra, Trisha Poojitha, Lauren Cheatle*, Kathryn Bryce*, Mannat Kashyap, Veda Krishnamurthy, Tarannum Pathan

Mumbai Indians: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Amanjot Kaur, Amelia Kerr*, Chloe Tryon*, Hayley Matthews*, Humairaa Kaazi, Issy Wong*, Jintimani Kalita, Nat Sciver-Brunt*, Pooja Vastrakar, Priyanka Bala, Saika Ishaque, Yastika Bhatia, Shabnim Ismail*, S Sajana, Amandeep Kaur, Fatima Jaffer, Keerthana B

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Smriti Mandhana (c), Asha Shobana, Disha Kasat, Ellyse Perry*, Heather Knight*, Indrani Roy, Kanika Ahuja, Renuka Singh, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil, Sophie Devine*, Ekta Bisht, Georgia Wareham, Kate Cross, Shubha Satheesh, S Meghana, Simran Dil Bahadur, Sophie Molineux*

UP Warriorz: Alyssa Healy* (c), Anjali Sarvani, Deepti Sharma, Grace Harris*, Kiran Navgire, Lauren Bell*, Laxmi Yadav, Parshavi Chopra, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, S. Yashasri, Shweta Sehrawat, Sophie Ecclestone*, Tahlia Mcgrath*, Vrinda Dinesh, Danni Wyatt, Poonam Khemnar, Saima Thakor, Gouher Sultana