The historic first-ever Women’s Premier League (WPL) mega auction stole the headlines today from Delhi. With the WPL 2026 start date confirmed as 7 January before the auction, the two-time and defending champions Mumbai Indians took the stage of WPL 2026 from the sides after spending Rs 9.3 crore on retention. They were the only team besides Delhi Capitals to use all five retention options. They went into the auction with a limited purse but with a clear plan and were able to grab some big names who helped them win the trophy last season despite having no RTM available.
WPL 2026: Mumbai Indians retained players
The two-time WPL champions left no one surprised when they used all five retention options ahead of the WPL 2026 mega auction given how stable their squad was. They retained the likes of Harmanpreet Kaur, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amanjot Kaur, G Kamilini and Hayley Matthews. Brunt was their biggest retention at Rs 3.5 crore, followed by Harman’s Rs 2.5 crore.
WPL 2026: Mumbai Indians go hard for former players
Despite having a low auction purse, Mumbai did not hesitate to go hard for their former players when they signed Amelia Kerr, the Kiwi all-rounder, for Rs 3 crore, making her their second most expensive player in WPL 2026. They also signed South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail and uncapped Sanskriri Gupta to add players in all departments.
Mumbai Indians’ all picks in the WPL 2026 mega auction:
| Player | Base Price | Winning Bid | Capped / Uncapped |
| Amelia Kerr | ₹50 Lac | ₹3 Cr | Capped |
| Sajeevan Sajana | ₹30 Lac | ₹75 Lac | Capped |
| Shabnim Ismail | ₹40 Lac | ₹60 Lac | Capped |
| Nicola Carey | ₹30 Lac | ₹30 Lac | Capped |
| Saika Ishaque | ₹30 Lac | ₹30 Lac | Capped |
| Sanskriti Gupta | ₹20 Lac | ₹20 Lac | Uncapped |
| Triveni Vasistha | ₹20 Lac | ₹20 Lac | Uncapped |
| Rahila Firdous | ₹10 Lac | ₹10 Lac | Uncapped |
| Poonam Khemnar | ₹10 Lac | ₹10 Lac | Uncapped |
| Nalla Reddy | ₹10 Lac | ₹10 Lac | Uncapped |
| Milly Illingworth | ₹10 Lac | ₹10 Lac | Uncapped |