Kochi: Australia captain Sophie Molineux was the costliest buy at the Women's Premier League mini auction on Wednesday, going to UP Warriorz for ₹1.10 crore against a base price of ₹50 lakh.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru bid too, but Warriorz had the biggest purse of the five franchises at ₹3.75 crore and would not be outbid. Molineux, a spin-bowling all-rounder, led Australia to the T20 World Cup title in England about three months ago.
Among Indian players, Kiran Navgire drew the highest price. Delhi Capitals bought her for ₹75 lakh against a base price of ₹40 lakh, beating off Mumbai Indians.
The story of the evening, though, was Uma Kashvi. The Karnataka teenager, who is 15 years and 202 days old, went to Delhi Capitals for ₹10 lakh, making her the youngest player ever bought at a WPL auction. She breaks the mark set by Deeya Yadav, who was 16 when she was picked last year.
"I think it came as a surprise to everybody. She most likely won't be available, as she's part of the Under-19 World Cup setup," her coach Arjun Dev said. Kashvi was the leading run-scorer in the Women's Under-15 One-Day Trophy in 2026, making 516 runs at an average of 172.
Of 146 players listed, franchises had 27 slots and filled 25, spending a combined ₹6.25 crore. UP Warriorz made eight signings: Molineux, Grace Harris, Sneh Rana, Sushma Verma and Asha Sobhana at ₹30 lakh each, and Kathryn Bryce, Manali Dakshini and Sahana Pawar at ₹10 lakh each.
Delhi added Kirstie Gordon, Uma Kashvi and Nazma Khan at ₹10 lakh each alongside Navgire. RCB took Jess Jonassen for ₹40 lakh, Tejal Hasabnis and Chloe Tryon for ₹30 lakh each and Vrinda Dinesh for ₹10 lakh. Mumbai Indians picked Shweta Sehrawat for ₹20 lakh and five others at ₹10 lakh each.
Gujarat Giants signed G. Kamalini for ₹40 lakh, Orla Prendergast for ₹30 lakh and Samaira Raghav for ₹10 lakh. Prendergast becomes the first Irish player to be picked in the league.
There were notable misses. England opener Sophia Dunkley, who had set a base price of ₹50 lakh, found no takers, as did Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu at ₹30 lakh. The fifth season runs from January 14 to February 7, 2027.