5 biggest steals of the WPL Auction 2023
WPL auction 2023 got off to a roaring start as the first player to be sold was India vice-captain Smiriti Mandhana, who was snapped up by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 3.4 crore.
Today, in many ways, could change women’s cricket, and RCB got off the blocks very quickly. They also added Ellyse Perry for INR 1.7 crore and Sophie Devine at her base price of INR 50 lakh.
However, a number of players were picked up rather cheaply, considering their quality, use, and records at the international stage.
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Here, we take a look at 5 players who were absolute steals at the WPL Auction 2023:
#5 Deandra Dottin
The first woman to slam a ton in T20Is back in 2010, Deandra Dottin is the perfect T20 player. She is a powerful batter, an exceptionally deceptive bowler, and a very experienced player to have in the ranks.
She is the most-capped West Indies’ women cricketer, having played 127 T20 and 143 one-day internationals. She came into the WPL auction 2023 at a base price of Rs. 50 lakh and was acquired by Gujarat Giants for Rs. 60 lakh.
For such quality, Gujarat will consider themselves extremely lucky to have her in their squad.
#4 Sophie Devine
Royal Challengers Bangalore picked up Sophie Devine for Rs.50 lakh, her base price, and this was one of the steals at the WPL Auction 2023.
Devine is an experienced all-rounder and current captain of New Zealand. She is 50 runs shy of reaching 3000 T20I runs and has more than 100 wickets.
Devine holds the record of scoring six consecutive half-centuries in T20I cricket. She could open the innings with Smriti Mandhana.
#3 Sophia Dunkley
Sophia Dunkley has found her groove as an opener for England in T20Is. Ever since she started opening, she has scored 415 runs at a strike rate of 119.59. This includes two half-centuries in 16 innings.
She is also a gun fielder and can prove to be a long-term investment. She was picked up by Gujarat Giants for Rs.60 lakh after having a base price of Rs.30 lakh. Another superb investment made by Gujarat considering the talent and longevity of the player.
#2 Sneh Rana
Sneh Rana is an Indian all-rounder – a rare but priceless category to be in. She has been one of the mainstays of the Indian side for a while now with her frugal off-spin and decent batting lower down the order. She has the ability to bowl in the powerplay as well as in the death overs.
Rana also has the temperament to put a price on her wicket and be a reliable batter lower down the order. She came into the WPL Auction 2023 at a base price of Rs.50 lakh and was snapped up by Gujarat Giants for Rs.75 lakh.
#1 Alyssa Healy
One of the fiercest strikers of the ball in the women's game, Alyssa Healy has been a sensational player for Australia over the years. She is an extremely tidy wicketkeeper as well and also has leadership experience.
The Australian has 2355 runs in 137 T20Is at a strike rate of 128.26, with one hundred and 13 fifties.
She was picked up by UP Warriorz for Rs 70 lakh at the inaugural WPL Auction 2023 in Mumbai in one of the best and perhaps the most effective buys.