Smriti goes to RCB for Rs 3.4 crore, Harmanpreet gets Rs 1.8 crore from Mumbai Indians in WPL auction

India’s star opener Smriti Mandhana has been hired by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 3.4 crore while captain Harmanpreet Kaur has won an offer of Rs 1.8 crore in the ongoing Women’s Premier League 2023 auction in Mumbai on Monday.

There was fierce bidding between for India T20I vice-captain Smriti by Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians, with the base price starting at Rs 50 lakh, and in the end RCB won. She is one of the top women batters in the world as she is equally comfortable playing against pace or spin.

Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians went all out in the bidding for India captain Harmanpreet Kaur.  While the RCB started the bid, Delhi Capitals joined the fierce bidding round against RCB Capitals as the bid rose to Rs 1.10 crore. In the end, Mumbai pipped both of them with the highest offer.

Harmanpreet is the most hard-hitting batter in women’s cricket due to her power and is a game-changer when she is at her best.

A total of 1,525 players registered for the inaugural WPL auction and the final list was pruned to 409 players.

The inaugural edition of WPL will be played in Mumbai from March 4 to 26 across two Mumbai venues and the player auction for the same will be held on February 13.