NEW DELHI: Star India all rounder Deepti Sharma emerged as the costliest buy of the 2026 WPL mega auction while other ODI world cup standouts Shree Charani and Laura Wolvaardt also walked away with hefty pay cheques on Thursday.

UP Warriorz dominate early big buys

The seasoned Deepti expectedly fetched the big bucks with UP Warriorz using the Right to Match (RTM) card to retain the India all rounder for a whopping Rs 3.20 crore. She is now the second highest paid Indian player in WPL history just Rs 20 lakh behind Smriti Mandhana.

"We definitely expected price to be in the range of what we saw. It’s the premium what you pay for high quality spin bowling all rounders and there was no doubt that we wanted Deepti back," UP Warriorz Director of Cricket Operations Kshemal Waingankar said.

Mumbai Indians made one of the day’s biggest moves by buying New Zealand all rounder Amelia Kerr for Rs 3 crore. The 25 year old was part MI's title winning runs in 2023 and 2025.

UP Warriorz surprisingly shelled out Rs 2.40 crore for the veteran India all rounder Shikha Pandey who last played for the national side in 2023.

Left arm spinner Charani a key performer in India's triumphant world cup run was snapped up by Delhi Capitals for Rs 1.30 crore almost five times her base price of Rs 30 lakh after an intense bidding battle with the Warriorz.

Delhi Capitals stay aggressive in mid auction flurry

Delhi Capitals continued their aggressive approach outbidding Royal Challengers Bengaluru to land South Africa captain Wolvaardt for Rs 1.10 crore and West Indian batter Chinelle Henry (Rs 1.30 crore) while also adding India all rounder Sneh Rana for Rs 50 lakh.

"In Laura we've got a tremendous player who can fill in those shoes. She will add a lot of leadership into the dressing room but we are very clear that we want to go with an Indian captain," DC co owner Parth Jindal said.

The Warriorz armed with the auction's largest purse of Rs 14.5 crore were among the busiest franchises. Along with Deepti they exercised RTM cards to bring back young pace sensation Kranti Gaud (Rs 50 lakh) and England's premier spinner Sophie Ecclestone (Rs 85 lakh).

They further bolstered their Indian core by signing Harleen Deol for her base price of Rs 50 lakh.

Gujarat Giants bagged India pacer Renuka Singh for Rs 60 lakh while RCB picked up big hitting South African finisher Nadine de Klerk (Rs 65 lakh) as well as India all rounders Arundhati Reddy (Rs 75 lakh) and Radha Yadav (Rs 65 lakh).

The seasoned duo of Meg Lanning and Sophie Devine were also among the marquee picks. Giants bought Devine for Rs 2 crore while UP Warriorz landed Lanning who led Delhi Capitals to three finals for Rs 1.90 crore after a fierce tussle with her former team DC.

Warriorz also added rising Australian star Phoebe Litchfield for Rs 1.20 crore.

(With PTI Inputs)