WPL 2027 Auction: The Players Who Will Start Bidding Wars Guide

Only two players in the pool start at ₹50 lakh, the highest base price in this auction.

Sophie Molineux (Australia, all-rounder, ₹50 lakh)

Molineux is the Australia captain and a left-arm spin bowling all-rounder, one of the rarest combinations in the women's game. She was Player of the Match in the 2024 final, taking 3 for 20 as RCB beat Delhi Capitals, and she offers control, middle overs wickets and lower order batting in one signing.

Analysis: UP Warriorz can chase her with money and slots, and RCB know her from a title winning season. Delhi, who cannot buy back Alana King because she has not registered, could see her as the closest like for like spin answer in the pool. The limit is price: RCB have ₹1.15 crore for 5 slots and Delhi ₹1.10 crore for 5, so if UP Warriorz make her a priority, the others may walk away early.

Sophia Dunkley (England, batter, ₹50 lakh)

Dunkley is the pure batting star of this pool, an England top order batter at the top base price. With only 27 overseas players in the pool, and only 14 of them capped, proven international batting is in short supply.

Analysis: her market is narrower than her talent. Mumbai cannot bid, and Gujarat, with 15 players held and a settled top order, have less obvious room. That leaves UP Warriorz as the clearest buyer, with RCB the other team holding 2 overseas slots. If both push, Dunkley could be a story of the night. If only one does, she could be good value, because a bidding war needs two committed tables.

Four players start at ₹40 lakh: G Kamalini, Kiran Navgire, Heather Graham and Jess Jonassen. Two are Indian, two overseas.

G Kamalini (India, wicketkeeper batter, ₹40 lakh) and the Mumbai Release Question

Kamalini is the most intriguing release in the pool. Mumbai Indians let her go, and she now sits as the joint highest priced Indian player in the auction. Young Indian wicketkeeper batters who can also score quickly do not enter mini auction pools often, and a good one can hold a squad place for years.

Analysis: will Mumbai buy her back? On the numbers it looks very difficult. Mumbai have ₹90 lakh for 6 slots and can only sign Indians, so Kamalini at base price would take ₹40 lakh of that ₹90 lakh, leaving ₹50 lakh for 5 more signings. UP Warriorz, with 8 slots and a need for Indian batting and keeping depth, are better placed. If two teams want a long term Indian wicketkeeper batter, she could start a real war at a price Mumbai cannot follow.

Kiran Navgire (India, batter, ₹40 lakh)

Navgire is a power hitter, released by UP Warriorz, and power is the hardest Indian batting skill to find in this pool. Most of the 97 uncapped Indians at ₹10 lakh are prospects; Navgire is a known quantity built around hitting boundaries.

Analysis: a buyback by UP Warriorz is a live possibility in our view, because they still have the gap she fills and the money to pay for it. RCB, who released Grace Harris and need middle order power, could also value an Indian option who does not use an overseas slot.

Jess Jonassen (Australia, all-rounder, ₹40 lakh)

Jonassen brings experience, left-arm spin and calm in pressure overs, a bracket below Molineux in base price. Analysis: for a one bullet team she is the value version of the Molineux idea, covering spin and batting depth for less. Delhi are the obvious team to watch here, with Gujarat also holding a single overseas slot if they want cover rather than a star.

Heather Graham (Australia, all-rounder, ₹40 lakh)

Graham is a pace bowling all-rounder, a different shape of player from Jonassen and Molineux, and that is her value. Teams whose overseas spin is covered but who want seam bowling and lower order hitting have very few options in this pool. Analysis: UP Warriorz could still use overseas seam support, while Delhi, with Marizanne Kapp and Annabel Sutherland already held, have less need. Her price will depend on whether one team sees her as a first choice or several see her as cover.

Thirty players start at ₹30 lakh, and the most dangerous names in that band are players the league already knows. Released does not mean finished. It often means a good player became available just as another team's need appeared.

Grace Harris (Australia, all-rounder, ₹30 lakh)

Harris is the standout name in this bracket. Released by RCB, she comes in after a 2026 season in which she struck at 178.19, a strike rate that changes games in a handful of balls. She bats with power, bowls useful overs and fields like a specialist, and she starts a full bracket below the ₹50 lakh stars, which invites more teams in.

Analysis: RCB buying her back is the simplest story, and UP Warriorz needing overseas impact with 3 slots open is the other. Both cannot have her. She is, in our analysis, the overseas player in this band most likely to sell well above her base price.

Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka, all-rounder, ₹30 lakh)

Athapaththu is one of the most explosive openers in world cricket, a genuine match winner who also bowls off-spin, giving a team two players in one slot. Analysis: UP Warriorz already hold Meg Lanning and Phoebe Litchfield, so they would be buying star power and flexibility rather than filling a vacancy. A team that wants an overseas opener who can also bowl may value her more, and at ₹30 lakh even a short bidding war makes her good value.

Sneh Rana (India, all-rounder, ₹30 lakh)

Rana was released by Delhi Capitals and is one of the most experienced Indian spin bowling all-rounders in the pool, with a long record at international and league level. Analysis: Delhi could look at a return, but Mumbai, who need Indian bowling after releasing Saika Ishaque, and UP Warriorz, who need depth everywhere, may value her more. A capped Indian at ₹30 lakh who does not touch an overseas slot interests every table, because all five teams can bid for her.

Chloe Tryon (South Africa, all-rounder, ₹30 lakh)

Tryon, released by UP Warriorz, is a right-handed power hitter and left-arm spinner, a rare mix that breaks up bowling plans and matchups. Analysis: her former team is her most natural buyer, because UP Warriorz know her role and have the slots. At ₹30 lakh, she does not need a long war to be one of the smarter buys of the night.

The ₹30 lakh band also includes batters Raghvi Bist, Tejal Hasabnis and Ayushi Soni, all-rounders Orla Prendergast, Annerie Dercksen and Kayla Reyneke, wicketkeepers including Taniyaa Bhatia and Uma Chetry, and the bowlers covered next. This is the bracket where most of the 27 slots will actually be decided.

Start with the slots, not the batters. Of the 27 slots open, 20 are for Indian players. Teams cannot fill those with overseas bargains; they have to find Indian players, and the hardest to find are bowlers who can bowl four overs in the WPL right now. Three names lead that market, all at ₹30 lakh.

Titas Sadhu (India, bowler, ₹30 lakh)

Sadhu was released by Gujarat Giants and is a young Indian seamer with league and international experience. Indian pace is rarer than Indian spin in this pool, and several squads are one injury away from a pace problem. Analysis: UP Warriorz, Delhi and Mumbai all have reasons to want Indian pace cover, and Mumbai in particular can only buy Indians, so a proven Indian seamer is one of the few players worth one of their bigger spends.

Saika Ishaque (India, bowler, ₹30 lakh)

Ishaque was released by Mumbai Indians and is a left-arm spinner who has already shown she can succeed in this league. Left-arm spin from an Indian player is valuable because it frees overseas slots for batting or pace. Analysis: a Mumbai buyback is plausible in our analysis if the price stays at a level their ₹90 lakh purse can carry, because she fills a known role in a known system. If Mumbai hesitate, UP Warriorz and Delhi both need spin depth and have more money.

Asha Sobhana (India, bowler, ₹30 lakh)

Sobhana was released by UP Warriorz and is an experienced leg-spinner, the wicket taking option captains turn to when a game drifts. Analysis: UP Warriorz already have Sophie Ecclestone and Deepti Sharma, so she would be depth and variety for them; for a team with a thinner spin group, she could be more than that. That difference in how teams value the same player is what creates bidding wars in the middle brackets.

The same ₹30 lakh bowling group also includes Rosemary Mair, Saima Thakor, Tayla Vlaeminck, Priya Mishra, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Preeti Bose and Shuchi Upadhyay, among others. Not all will sell. The Indian names start with an advantage: every team can use an Indian slot, and most teams need to.

The biggest group in the pool is at the bottom: 106 players start at ₹10 lakh, and 97 of the Indian players in the pool are uncapped. Most fans will not know most of these names, but the WPL has already shown what a pick from this bracket can do.

The proof is Nandni Sharma. Delhi held her rather than releasing her, because in 2026 she took 17 wickets, level with Purple Cap winner Sophie Devine, and the first hat-trick by an uncapped player in WPL history. An uncapped prospect became one of the bowlers of the season. That is the upside hidden in the steal zone.

This year's ₹10 lakh group includes Shweta Sehrawat and Gongadi Trisha, both released by UP Warriorz, Vrinda Dinesh, and Gautami Naik, released by RCB. It also includes Associate players Sarah Bryce and Kathryn Bryce from Scotland and Esha Oza from the UAE, who carry an extra attraction: a team can field an Associate player as a 5th overseas player in the XI, as Mumbai can now do with Tara Norris.

Analysis: the steal zone is where Mumbai have to live, with ₹90 lakh for 6 slots, and where UP Warriorz will finish their squad. It is also where smart teams find the next Nandni Sharma: the ₹10 lakh pick who plays eight matches and bowls the over that wins one of them.

Three released players will not be part of this auction, because they have not registered for the pool.

• Deandra Dottin, released by UP Warriorz, is not registered. One of the most powerful all-rounders in the women's game will not be available to fill an overseas slot.
• Alana King, released by Delhi Capitals, is not registered. Delhi cannot solve their overseas spin question by buying her back, which is why the Molineux and Jonassen brackets matter so much to them.
• Lizelle Lee, also released by Delhi Capitals, is not registered. Lee was Delhi's top scorer in 2026, so her runs must be replaced from inside the retained squad or by a new overseas signing.

Analysis: a release only becomes an auction opportunity if the player registers. In these three cases, she did not.

Analysis and predictions only. The calls below are the author's assessment, not confirmed news or franchise intent.

• Bold call 1: UP Warriorz sign one of the two ₹50 lakh players and still finish with money unspent. With 8 slots to fill, squad balance will force them to keep a reserve for the ₹10 lakh rounds.
• Bold call 2: Grace Harris sells for at least double her ₹30 lakh base price. A strike rate of 178.19 in 2026, plus batting, bowling and fielding in one overseas slot, keeps more than one table in a bidding war.
• Bold call 3: Kamalini does not return to Mumbai Indians. Her ₹40 lakh base price is too large a share of a ₹90 lakh purse covering 6 slots, so a team with more room will take her.
• Bold call 4: At least one ₹10 lakh uncapped Indian becomes a regular starter in 2027. The Nandni Sharma season in 2026 showed how quickly an uncapped pick can become central, and 20 Indian slots have to be filled.

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If you enjoy auction strategy and long term squad building, try building a T20 dynasty across seasons in IPL Dynasty as well.

• All pool, base price, purse and slot figures are as of 26 October 2026, ahead of the auction on 28 October 2026.
• Base prices are starting prices only. Final prices are set by bidding and may be far above the brackets used here.
• Many players will go unsold. Inclusion here does not mean a player will be bought, and omission does not mean a player has no chance. Only 27 of the 146 players can be signed.
• Sections labelled analysis, including team fits, likely bidders and the predictions box, are the author's assessment, not statements of franchise intent.
• The 2027 season venues have not yet been officially announced.

• Official WPL 2027 auction pool list, with all 146 registered players and base prices.
• WPL retention and release lists closed on 28 September 2026, for all five teams.
• The Tara Norris trade announcement of 12 October 2026, confirming Mumbai hold 6 overseas players and have no overseas slots open.
• Post-trade purse and slot figures for all five teams as of 26 October 2026.
• WPL season records for 2026, including Grace Harris's strike rate and Nandni Sharma's 17 wickets and hat-trick.
• WPL final record for 2024, including Sophie Molineux's Player of the Match performance.

• WPL 2027 Season Guide: Dates, Format, Teams and What to Watch: Season dates, the format, the five teams and captains, and the storylines for the fifth Women's Premier League.
• WPL 2027 Auction: Date, Players, Purse and Rules: Date, player pool, purses, slots and rules for the WPL 2027 mini auction in Kochi: 146 players chasing 27 places.
• WPL 2027 Auction: Team by Team: Each franchise's purse, open slots, retained core and biggest need going into the WPL 2027 auction.
• How the WPL Auction Works: Mega and mini auctions, retention slabs, Right to Match, base prices and the Associate-player rule, explained.
• Play WPL Dynasty, or browse every guide.