Ahead of the upcoming Women’s Premier League (WPL) season starting January 14, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has officially announced the player retention and release deadlines. Across all five participating franchises, a total of 63 players—including 23 overseas stars—have been retained, leaving 27 slots open for the upcoming player auction.
Key Franchise Updates and High-Profile Releases
Franchises have made strategic overhauls to their rosters, parting ways with several seasoned international and domestic campaigners:
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB): Defending champions RCB have opted to release Australian opener Grace Harris, alongside D. Hemalatha, Gautami Naik, and Linsey Smith. However, legendary Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry has confirmed her availability for the upcoming campaign.
UP Warriorz: Holding the largest remaining auction purse of ₹3.65 crore, UP Warriorz released the highest number of players (nine), including heavyweights like Kiran Navgire and West Indian star Deandra Dottin.
Delhi Capitals & Mumbai Indians: Delhi Capitals parted ways with six players—including Australian spinner Elana King, Sneh Rana, and Lizelle Lee—while two-time champions Mumbai Indians released six players, notably Saika Ishaq and G. Kamalini. Gujarat Giants also confirmed the release of veteran English batter Danielle Wyatt-Hodge.
WPL 2027 Retained Squads at a Glance
Delhi Capitals: Annabel Sutherland, Chinelle Henry, Diya Yadav, Jemimah Rodrigues, Lara Wolvaardt, Lucy Hamilton, Mamta Madiwala, Marizanne Kapp, Minnu Mani, N. Sri Charani, Nandini Sharma, Niki Prasad, and Shafali Verma.
Gujarat Giants: Anushka Sharma, Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney, Bharti Fulmali, Georgia Wareham, Happy Kumari, Jintimani Kalita, Kanika Ahuja, Kashvi Gautam, Kim Garth, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Singh, Sophie Devine, Tanuja Kanwar, and Yastika Bhatia.
Mumbai Indians: Amanjot Kaur, Amelia Kerr, Harmanpreet Kaur, Hayley Matthews, Natalie Sciver-Brunt, Nicola Carey, Rahila Firdous, Sajeevan Sajna, Sanskriti Gupta, Shabnim Ismail, and Vaishnavi Sharma.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Arundhati Reddy, Ellyse Perry, Georgia Volland, Lauren Bell, Nadine de Klerk, Pooja Vastrakar, Pratyusha Kumar, Prema Rawat, Radha Yadav, Richa Ghosh, Sayali Satghare, Shreyanka Patil, and Smriti Mandhana.
UP Warriorz: Deepti Sharma, Harleen Deol, Kranti Goud, Meg Lanning, Phoebe Litchfield, Pratika Rawal, Shikha Pandey, Shipra Giri, Simran Shaikh, Sophie Ecclestone, and Tara Norris.