Uncapped Indian allrounder Kshavee Gautam emerged the biggest gainer from the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024 Auction, bagging a whopping ₹2 cr bid for a base price of ₹10 lakh while fellow Indian Vrinda Dinesh went for ₹1.30 cr as the franchises focussed on Indian players with multiple skills. 

Kahsvee and Annabel Sutherland of Australia emerged as the biggest buys of the mini-auction going for ₹2 cr each while three players, Vrinda Dinesh (₹1.30 cr), Shabnim Ismail (₹1.20 cr) of South Africa and Phoebe Litchfield (₹1.00 cr) of Australia made up the top five buys with 

Royal Challengers Bangalore picked Ekta Bisht of India for ₹60 lakh.

In all, 30 players out of the total 160 that went under the hammer were picked by the five franchises, who collectively spent a total of ₹12.75 cr. 

Indian women shine at WPL auction

The thrust was on Indian players as only nine foreign players were recruited through this auction. A total of ₹6.85 cr was spent on Indian players while ₹5.9 cr was spent on foreign players. In all,  ₹4.9 cr of funds remained unutilised.

The focus, however, was Kashvee Gautam as she turned out to be the biggest gainer as Gujarat Giants broke the back to bag her. Having released the maximum number of players after the first edition, the Giants had the most funds and they went for Kashvee with full confidence and got the player they wanted.

Gujarat Giants made a winning bid of a whopping  ₹2 cr for Kashvee Gautam, a 20-year-old allrounder from Chandigarh, making her the joint-most expensive player with Annabel Sutherland of Australia in the first phase of the WPL 2024 auction.

Who is Kashvee Gautam?

A right-handed batter and a right-handed medium pacer, Kashvee has recently played for India A against the England A women in three T20Is in Mumbai and it appears that the scouts of the franchises have seen something that they feel makes the player a mega pick.

Gujarat won her after a fierce bidding war with UP Warriorz, who is one of the franchises with deep pockets in this Auction.

The auction started with Delhi Capitals breaking the bank for Australian allrounder Annabel Sutherland, claiming the player for  ₹2 cr.

Delhi jumped into the fray for the 22-year-old right-hand batter and medium-pacer from Australia with a base price of  ₹40 lakh, with Mumbai Indians taking them on straight away. Sutherland had played for Gujarat Giants in IPL 2023.

The two giants went at it with gusto as they hiked their bids by  ₹5 lakh continuously before they breached the one-cr mark and went past 1.5 cr. With Delhi Capitals lifting the paddle for a ₹2.0 cr bid, Mumbai Indians owner Nita Abmabi pulled out of the bidding and the player went to Delhi Capitals.

Delhi Capitals Head coach Jonathan Batty said they have come to the Auction with a certain strategy in mind and Annabel Sutherland fits the bill for them.

He said they already have a balanced squad and will go for players who can make it to the playing XI. “Annabel is a multi-skill player and can bat any position from No 3 to 7 and can bowl in any phase of the game,” said Batty.

The  ₹1 cr mark was breached in the opening set of players with Phoebe Litchfield going for  ₹1 cr to Gujarat Giants. The player came up with a base price of ₹30 lakh and Gujarat were engaged in a bidding battle with UP Warriorz before getting their player for ₹1 cr.

Gujarat Giants mentor Mithali Raj said they were looking for a left-handed batter who can bat in the middle-order and Phoebe fits those parameters. “She bats in the middle-order for Australia. We wanted a leftie who could bat in the middle-order. We have another leftie in the middle-order so this brings a good balance,” said Mithali.

In the second session, the focus was on Vrinda Dinesh, the young allrounder from Karnataka who was picked by UP Warriorz for ₹1.30 cr. 

The 22-year-old is a right-handed batter and a right-arm leg-break bowler and is currently part of the Karnataka Women’s Cricket Team and has played for India A Women’s Cricket Team against England recently.

Vrinda is known as a consistent batter who has done well in the local leagues in Karnataka and UP Warriorz went for her outbidding Gujarat, Mumbai Indians and Delhi. 

Among the other top buys, Indian player Ekta

Bisht went to Royal Challengers Bangalore for ₹60 lakh, who also bagged Georgia Wareham (AUS) for ₹40 lakh. 

Seasoned India batter Veda Krishnamurthy went unsold in the first session but was brought back under the hammer later and was picked by Gujarat Giants for ₹30 lakh, her base price.

In all, Gujarat Giants bought 10 players, Royal Challengers Bangalore picked seven; UP Warriorz recruited five, Mumbai Indians picked five players and Delhi Capitals took three.

Among the players that went unsold included Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu, Naomi Stalenberg of Australia, Deandra Dottin of the West Indies and Maia Bouchier of England. 

Athapaththu was the player of the tournament of the recent season of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) WBBL in Australia.

Kshavee, Vrinda’s success is a message for all women players: Jay Shah

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) honorary secretary Jay Shah said the amounts signify the growth of the league.

“The biggest thing that you saw today was that two uncapped players have got such big amounts, especially Indian players. The franchise has shown a lot of interest towards the Indian players which is a big thing,” Shah said after the WPL 2024 Auction on Dec 9.

He said that Kashvee and Vrinda attracting big money is a message for all women cricket players that if they work hard they can also get similar prices in the future.

“It is a huge message for all women cricket players that if we work hard on the ground we will also get a similar price in the future. It is very encouraging for all young female players,” he added.

He said that the BCCI is doing its bit to upscale women's cricket in the country.

As part of this, he said the BCCI will give the same amount of interest to the Women’s World Cup (50 overs) in 2025 as it gave to the 2023 Men’s ODI World Cup in India.

“The way you do not get to see any difference between IPL and WPL, similarly you will not get to see any difference between the men’s World Cup and women’s World Cup. We will ensure the same treatment is given,” Shah said.

Women’s cricket has been on an upswing since the BCCI took over its reins. When India last hosted the Women’s ODI World Cup in 2013, matches were held in Mumbai (Brabourne, Bandra Kurla Stadium and MIG Club) and not Wankhede. Cuttack hosted matches in Barabati Stadium and DRIEMS Stadium.

(Source: IANS)

-Edited for style

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