New Delhi [India], November 17 (ANI): The mega auction for the upcoming season of the Women's Premier League (WPL) will take place in New Delhi on November 27, with the announcement coming following the announcement of retained and released players by all franchises earlier this month.

Taking to their official X handle, WPL posted a 10-day countdown, 'Days to Go The countdown to #TATAWPL Mega Auction has begun. Catch the #TATAWPLAuction 2026 on November 27 on http://WPLT20.COM'

https://x.com/wplt20/status/1990325698880549193

Each franchise will be allowed to build a squad of upto 18 players. A total of 73 slots have to be filled, including 23 overseas slots, across five franchises, as per Olympics.com.

UP Warriorz, who just retained the uncapped Indian batter Shweta Sehrawat, will be entering the auction with most amount of money in their purse, four right-to-match (RTM) options and a massive rebuilding to do.

Defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI), captained by Harmanpreet Kaur, and three-time runners-up Delhi Capitals (DC) have retained the maximum quota of five players and have no RTM available. DC also retained Shafali Varma and Jemimah Rodrigues, two young Indian batters who starred in India's ICC Women's World Cup title win, with standout performances in the knockout stages.

In these three seasons, WPL has seen some players getting massive bids, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Smriti Mandhana being the most expensive player in the tournament's history, with Rs 3.4 crore shelled out on her ahead of the inaugural season. She led RCB to the title in the 2024 season and was one of the four players, including Richa Ghosh, Ellyse Perry and Shreyanka Patil, retained by the franchise.

In total, 17 players, including seven overseas players, were retained across all franchises, and they will have a combined purse of Rs 41.1 crore to spend at the auction.

Some of the biggest names in world cricket, including the 2025 Women's WC 'Player of the Tournament' all-rounder Deepti Sharma, South Africa's star batter and skipper Laura Wolvaardt, who broke several batting records with a chart-topping World Cup performance, which saw her score 571 runs, including two centuries in semifinal and final each and three fifties, Aussie legends Alyssa Healy and Meg Lanning, New Zealand stalwart Amelia Kerr and South Africa's Nadine de Klerk.

The full list of players available at auction will be released by the WPL later. (ANI)