3 notable Indian names missing from WPL 2025 Auction list ft. Veda Krishnamurthy
The Women's Premier League (WPL) 2025 pre-season is at its final stages with the final player list for the auction announced on December 7. The event, set to happen in Bengaluru on December 15, will boast a total of 120 players.
While the Gujarat Giants enter the auction with the highest purse of ₹4.4 crores, the Delhi Capitals will have the smallest purse with ₹2.5 crores.
As expected, the Indians dominate the list with 91 players, while the rest will be overseas players, including three from Associate nations. Despite the 91 Indian players set to be part of the auction, only nine are capped.
While most of the five participating franchises have retained their core players, other well-known names like Sneh Rana and Lauren Bell, among others will go under the hammer a week from today. Teams like the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Delhi Capitals, and Mumbai Indians will look to build on two solid seasons. Meanwhile, others like the UP warriorz and especially Gujarat Giants will look to almost start from scratch after a torrid first two WPL campaigns.
Yet, a few well-known Indian names (capped and uncapped) find themselves missing from the auction list.
Here, we look at three notable Indian names that are not part of the WPL 2025 auction list.
#1 Veda Krishnamurthy
One of India's long-time serving players Veda Krishnamurthy appears to nearing the end of her illustrious career.
The 32-year-old last played for India in 2020 but had a go with the Gujarat Giants (GG) in the 2024 WPL season. However, she endured a massive struggle with only 22 runs in four matches at an average of 5.50 and a strike rate of 68.75.
Veda's sorry showing defined GG's campaign in a nutshell as they finished at the bottom of the points table for a second consecutive season. The veteran middle-batter was unsurprisingly let go by the franchise and her subsequent absence on the auction list possibly signals the end of her WPL career.
Veda played 76 T20Is and 48 ODIs for India from 2011 to 2020, scoring over 1,700 runs with a combined 10 half-centuries.
#2 Humaria Kazi
Maharashtra-born Humaria Kazi has played both WPL seasons for Mumbai Indians (MI) but with very little to show for in terms of telling contributions with the willow.
Despite playing 10 matches in their title run in 2023, the 31-year-old scored 8 runs in her three innings at an average of four. She was no better in WPL 2024, finishing with 10 runs in seven matches at an average of five.
With the team also faltering in the 2024 playoffs, MI did not retain Kazi and the right-handed batter was also absent from the auction list.
This is despite her helping Mumbai recently win their second senior Women's T20 Trophy, scoring 41* in the final against Bengal. Kazi was also adjudged the Player of the Tournament.
#3 Disha Kasat
Another middle-order batter, Disha Kasat finds herself on the absentee list of the WPL 2025 auction.
The 27-year-old has been part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) setup over the past two seasons. Kasat endured a dismal 2023 campaign, scoring 11 runs in six matches at an average of 3.66 and a strike rate of 61.11.
The right-hander was even worse in the 2024 season, scoring no runs in the seven balls she faced despite RCB's memorable title run. With minimal contributions over two seasons, Kasat faced the axe from the championship-winning franchise during the retentions.
Missing out on the auction list would have come as an even bigger blow to the Maharashtra-born cricketer.