On Friday night, Uttarakhand’s Raghvi Bisht and Nandini Kashyap – ‘best friends’ since they started playing together for the state at age group level up to the senior level – received their first ever call-up to the senior Indian team together. On Sunday morning, teenagers G Kamalini, Joshita VJ, and Niki Prasad were on the field together for the India U-19 team, comfortably winning the Asia Cup match against Pakistan U-19. Meanwhile, in Ahmedabad, on a rest day of the Women’s Senior ODI Trophy, Mumbai’s Simran Sheikh was nervous about the proceedings in Bengaluru, hoping at least someone would pick up the paddle for her.
Until Sunday night, their lives changed as they found new homes in the Women’s Premier League. This was the defining story to emerge from the WPL 2025 auction, with 14 of the 19 available slots going to uncapped Indian cricketers. On the other hand, none of the 10 capped Indian players in the final shortlist, including Sneh Rana and Poonam Yadav, were found.
While the first set of 12 capped players passed largely in silence, it became clear that all teams – even those with large purses to take experienced players – were looking forward to the second set. Regardless of the top Indian internationals retained by the franchises, it was not entirely surprising. But Sunday’s proceedings were proof that the scouting information available to teams is far better now than it was when the league began in 2023.
Sixteen-year-old Kamalini, a wicket-keeper batsman from Tamil Nadu, started a serious bidding war between Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals. The winning bid of Rs 1.6 crore from MI came as no surprise to Aarti Sankaran, a former Tamil Nadu cricketer and National Cricket Academy-certified coach who has mentored the youngster, posting on X: “She is playing WPL for the team. The one who needs him the most and will use him the best. Mumbai Indians called him for several trials. Charlotte Edwards (head coach) knows who she wants.
That Kamalini scored a 29-ball 44 hours earlier against Pakistan U-19 at the Biomass Cricket Oval in Kuala Lumpur made the day even more special for him. Kamlini’s U19 teammates Niki (team captain) and Joshita (Anandan pacer) went to DC and RCB respectively.
The most expensive bid of the day went to Mumbai’s Dharavi batsman Simran, with Gujarat Giants and Delhi Capitals keen to add his power hitting to the line-up. Ultimately, Gujarat impressed its players with head coach Michael Klinger appreciating the ball-hitting ability he displayed in domestic cricket.
The past few days must have been a whirlwind for Raghavi and Nandini. In a video posted by the BCCI ahead of the T20I series against West Indies, Nandini, who visited DC, recalled how she had sent a message to Raghavi, who visited RCB, on her birthday last year. “I told him, ‘Brother, we should play together for India one day.’ Raghavi has saved that message. Their senior debuts will have to wait, but they have both made it to the WPL on the same day together. And to cap off an impressive day for Uttarakhand, leg-spin bowling all-rounder Prema Rawat generated serious interest before a bid of Rs 1.2 crore was brought in from defending champions RCB.
Away from the Indian selections, the headline recruitment was that of West Indies’ star all-rounder Diandra Duttin. The ‘World Boss’ was signed up by the Gujarat giants for the inaugural edition, but a controversy arose before the tournament began. The franchise announced his replacement, citing a lack of proper information about his fitness, and Dottin wrote on social media that she was “deeply disappointed by what can only be described as a surprise rationale for my exit from the tournament.”
Be that as it may, she has retired and retired from international cricket, and sent reminders of her class in the T20 World Cup and the Women’s Big Bash League, hitting the ball as cleanly as ever. Water under the bridge, then, he is set to finally make his presence felt at the WPL.
Top five bids:
Simran Shaikh: Rs 1.9 crore to GG (base: 10 lakhs)
Diandra Dottin: 1.7 Crores to GG (Base: 50 Lakhs)
G Kamalini: Rs 1.6 crore to MI (base: 10 lakh)
Prema Rawat: Rs 1.2 crore to RCB (base: 10 lakh)
N Charani: Rs 55 lakh to DC (Base: Rs 10 lakh)
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