A big news has emerged in the cricketing world ahead of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2026 mega auction. All teams have released their respective retention lists (WPL 2026 Retention List), and this time, several surprising decisions have been observed.
SPORTS NEWS: Big news has surfaced regarding the list of players retained and released by teams ahead of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2026 mega auction. Four key players from India's World Cup-winning team – Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Shafali Verma – have been retained by their respective franchises.
However, some surprising decisions have also been witnessed. Australia's Alyssa Healy and Meg Lanning, along with New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr, have been released by their respective franchises.
Indian Captain Harmanpreet and Smriti Mandhana Retained
India's women's team captain Harmanpreet Kaur has been retained by Mumbai Indians, while Smriti Mandhana will also remain with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Additionally, Jemimah Rodrigues and Shafali Verma have been retained by Delhi Capitals. These four players played crucial roles in India's victory in the recent Women's World Cup 2025.
The biggest surprise comes with India's all-rounder Deepti Sharma. Despite her excellent performance in the 2025 World Cup final and captaining UP Warriorz in Healy's absence, she has been released by the team. Besides Deepti, Australian stalwarts Alyssa Healy, former captain Meg Lanning, and New Zealand's star all-rounder Amelia Kerr have also not been retained by their teams.
Team-wise Retention List
- Delhi Capitals: Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Nikki Prasad
- Mumbai Indians: Harmanpreet Kaur, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amanjot Kaur, J. Kamalini, Hayley Matthews
- Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB): Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil
- Gujarat Giants: Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney
- UP Warriorz: Shweta Sehrawat
WPL Retention Rules
As per WPL rules, each franchise can retain a maximum of 5 players. Among these, there can be a maximum of 3 Indian players and 2 overseas players. If a team retains 5 players, at least one of them must be an uncapped Indian player. For the 2026 season, the Right To Match (RTM) card rule has been introduced in the league for the first time.
Under this rule, teams can re-acquire their former players in the auction. If a team retains 3 or 4 players, it will be allowed to use 2 or 1 RTM card in the auction, respectively.
Auction Purse and Retention Value
The WPL 2026 mega auction is likely to be held in Delhi on November 27. Each team has been allocated a purse of INR 15 crore. Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians will now have a remaining purse of INR 5.75 crore, and neither of these teams will have any RTM cards. UP Warriorz, who have retained only Shweta Sehrawat (an uncapped player), will have the largest purse of INR 14.5 crore and four RTM cards.
Gujarat Giants will have INR 9 crore and three RTM cards (only for Indian players). Meanwhile, RCB will have INR 6.25 crore and one RTM card.
