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Ahead of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2025 auction, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) head coach Luke Williams reflected on his team and noted that they had retained a solid core of players from last season.
The WPL Player Auction List has been released, with the eagerly awaited auction set to take place in Bengaluru on December 15. This year's auction features 120 players, including 91 Indian and 29 overseas cricketers, three of whom are from Associate Nations. Among the players, 82 are uncapped Indian cricketers, while 8 are uncapped overseas players. The auction, scheduled for Sunday, will offer 19 slots for teams to fill, including 5 reserved for overseas players. Royal Challengers Bengaluru, led by Smriti Mandhana, are the defending champions, having defeated Delhi Capitals in the WPL 2024 final held in Delhi. Luke Williams stated that the team management had retained a strong core to ensure consistency in the upcoming tournament. He also highlighted the importance of the mini-auction in strengthening the squad further. "We have looked to retain a solid core of the squad that was successful in last year's tournament to maintain that consistency within the team on and off the field. However, the mini-auction does provide a great opportunity for us to keep evolving and add additional players to our line-up that we think could impact the WPL and improve our squad," Williams said in a release from RCB Media. The five WPL teams have varying vacancies to address. Royal Challengers Bengaluru have four slots to fill but cannot add any more overseas players. Teams are allowed to include a seventh overseas player if she is from an Associate Nation. Among the Associate players registered for the auction are UAE's Samaira Dharnidharka and Theertha Satish, as well as Scotland's Sarah Bryce. Kathryn Bryce of Scotland, who previously played for Gujarat Giants, has not registered for this auction. In November, RCB announced the retention of 14 players, including six overseas cricketers, ahead of the WPL 2025 auction. The list features captain Smriti Mandhana, star batter Ellyse Perry, and wicket-keeper Richa Ghosh as key players from the championship-winning squad. Retained Players:Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry (overseas), Richa Ghosh, Sabbineni Meghana, Shreyanka Patil, Georgia Wareham (overseas), Asha Sobhana, Renuka Singh, Sophie Devine (overseas), Sophie Molineux (overseas), Ekta Bisht, Kanika Ahuja, Kate Cross (overseas), Danielle Wyatt-Hodge (overseas). (ANI)
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