WPL Auction 2023 Highlights: Smriti Mandhana costliest player at ₹3.4 crore; Harmanpreet, Deepti, Jemimah hit jackpots

WPL Auction 2023 Highlights: Smriti Mandhana fetched the highest price tag, having been acquired by RCB.

WPL Auction 2023 Highlights: Smriti Mandhana was the biggest attraction as she ended up as the most expensive purchase in the WPL Auction 2023, with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) acquiring her for ₹3.4 crore. In what turned out to be an entertaining day in Mumbai, the franchises battled hard to get their player, with plenty of drama. Australian all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner sparked a huge bidding war, with Gujarat Giants (GG) finally bagging her for ₹3.2 crore. Meanwhile, England's Natalie Sciver went to Mumbai Indians (MI) for ₹3.2 crore and in a day which looked like it was for all-rounders, Deepti Sharma was also roped in by UP Warriorz for ₹2.6 crore. Having recently smacked a match-winning unbeaten half-century vs Pakistan in the Women's T20 World Cup, Jemimah Rodrigues hit the jackpot and was purchased by Delhi Capitals (DC) for ₹2.2 crore, and they also bought Shafali Verma for ₹2 crore. Meanwhile, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur went to Mumbai for ₹1.8 crore, Ellyse Perry and Renuka Singh were purchased by RCB for ₹1.7 crore and ₹1.5 crore respectively. The auction saw 87 players go sold, including 30 overseas players, including the likes of Devika Vaidya going to UP for ₹1.4 crore, Amelia Kerr to MI for ₹1 crore and Richa Ghosh joining RCB for ₹1.9 crore.