It is known that the Women’s Premier League auction is to be held at the end of November before the 2026 season. The five WPL franchises are all set to revamp their squads to build a stronger team, as it was important to ensure that there is no imbalance between the squads in the tournament.
The five-team WPL is the most lucrative event in the history of women’s cricket. The Women’s Premier League was launched as part of a special initiative to promote women’s cricket as it launches in 2023.
Mumbai Indians emerged as champions of the inaugural season, while Royal Challengers Bangalore won the title in the second edition of the women’s championship. Mumbai Indians are currently the defending champions, having won it back in the latest season of 2025.
WPL mega auction will see major changes within five franchises
Five franchises in the WPL are set to revamp their squads ahead of the upcoming edition of the Women’s Premier League. ESPNcricinfo has reported that the franchises have been informally informed about the mega-auction, which is expected to take place in November later this year.
However, the franchises are awaiting confirmation from the WPL organizers The number of retentions, auction purse, retention slab and how many right-to-match (RTM) card options will be available. However, there is no confirmation yet as to when their meeting is likely to take place.
Even the dates for WPL 2026 have not been announced yet, although BCCI had earlier indicated that the tournament will be held in the window between January and February.
Gujarat Giants and UP Warriors support mega-auction
It is understood that Mumbai Indians and RCB Women, along with Delhi Capitals, are the three teams who are not in favor of the mega-auction. He has argued that he has worked hard to build his team, as he has established himself as a brand over the last three seasons.
However, two other franchises in the competition, which have not had good results in the history of the women’s tournament, Gujarat Giants and UP Warriors, have supported the need for a mega-auction. They are extremely keen to overhaul and rebuild their squad ahead of the next season.
One of the WPL official sides said that although they understand the three franchises’ objections against the mega auction, it is important to ensure that the tournament has five strong teams; Otherwise, the imbalance can only harm the brand.
WPL franchises will have the opportunity to retain their core
One of the WPL officials explained that, at the same time, the WPL will ensure that teams will still have the opportunity to retain their core squads. It is understood that some teams were in favor of being allowed to retain at least six or seven players.
WPL could end up with around five retentions. Also, as part of retention, there is a need to work out how many of these can be RTMs and how many can be utilized before the team goes into the mega-auction. There is still doubt over the number of capped and uncapped players.
The RTM rule has never been used in a WPL auction until now. India’s star batsman, Smriti Mandhana, who was bought for a whopping Rs 3.2 crore in the first WPL auction, remains the most expensive player ever.
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