Indian opener Smriti Mandhana triggered a bidding war in the inaugural Women's Premier League Auction at the Bandra-Kurla Complex in Mumbai on Monday. Mandhana, who missed the high-voltage clash between India and Pakistan at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 in South Africa due to an injury, will ply her trade with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the inaugural edition of the Women's Premier League.
The household names of superstar batter Mandhana and Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur were drawn in the first set of the Women's Premier League auction. In the race to sign the swashbuckling batter, Mumbai Indians kickstarted the bidding before RCB joined the action with an improved bid. Eager to sign the Indian opener, MI raised the paddle again to take the bidding war over ₹2 crore mark. Defeating Mumbai in the close-fought bidding war, RCB eventually signed Mandhana for a whopping sum of ₹3.4 crore at the auction.
Watching the drama unfold at the auction, Indian players congratulated Mandhana after the star batter was roped in by RCB for the forthcoming season of the Women's Premier League Auction. In the viral video shared on Twitter, members of the Harmanpreet-led side joined in the celebrations with 'RCB' chants. The wholesome reaction of the Indian cricketers after Mandhana became the first-ever WPL player at the auction soon became the talk of the town on the internet. Here's how Team India stars reacted after Mandhana became an RCB player at the auction.
One of the finest openers in the modern era of the game, Mandhana has played 4 Tests, 77 One Day International (ODIs) and 112 T20Is for Team India. The 26-year-old made her international debut against Bangladesh Women at the Reliance Stadium in 2013.
{{/usCountry}}One of the finest openers in the modern era of the game, Mandhana has played 4 Tests, 77 One Day International (ODIs) and 112 T20Is for Team India. The 26-year-old made her international debut against Bangladesh Women at the Reliance Stadium in 2013.
{{/usCountry}}"We have been watching auction of men's. It is such a big moment for women to have an auction of this sort. The whole thing is exacting. RCB's legacy is big, they have built a big fan-base. Hope we both can together build a big team. Namaskara Bengaluru, excited to wear the red and gold and aim for the cup," Mandhana said after joining RCB for the cash-rich league.