Kochi, Oct 28 (IANS) UP Warriorz (UPW) signed veteran India wicketkeeper-batter Sushma Verma for Rs 30 lakh, and Mumbai Indians picked up uncapped batter Disha Kasat for Rs 10 lakh, in an otherwise quiet phase of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2027 auction here on Wednesday.
It was a phase where a string of India internationals went unsold. UPW continued to be the busiest franchise at the table by landing Sushma at her base price. She last played a T20I for India in December 2016, but was with Gujarat Giants in WPL 2023, and now returns to the league via UPW, a side whose trials she did attend before the auction happened.
Disha, formerly with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their title winning season in 2024, was the only uncapped batter to find a buyer via Mumbai Indians. Taniyaa Bhatia, Asha Sobhana and Saika Ishaque were among the big names who failed to attract bids.
Sushma was the only one of the four capped wicketkeepers to be picked. Uma Chetry, part of India’s ODI World Cup-winning squad and the first cricketer from Assam to represent India, went unsold, so did Taniyaa, who was released by Delhi Capitals and Nuzhat Parween.
Though Taniyaa’s glovework is highly rated, but franchises have been wary of her batting. Fast bowlers had a lean round too. India’s Saima Thakor and Titas Sadhu, Australia’s Tayla Vlaeminck, Sri Lanka’s 19-year-old Mithali Ayodhya and New Zealand’s Rosemary Mair all went unsold at their base prices.
Titas, an Under-19 World Cup winner in 2023 who has played for Delhi Capitals and Gujarat Giants, has had injury concerns. Rosemary was part of New Zealand’s T20 World Cup-winning squad in 2024.
The capped spinners fared no better. Leg-spinner Priya Mishra, who made her India debut in 2024 and has played for Gujarat Giants, did not attract a bid. Left-arm spinner Saika, who made a strong impression in her debut WPL season with Mumbai Indians in 2023 before going on to play for India, did not get a buyer.
South Africa’s Nonkululeko Mlaba, the first player from her country to go under the hammer on the day, was unsold. The most notable of them going unsold was Asha Sobhana, who was part of RCB’s title-winning side in 2024, and missed the 2025 season through injury and was then bought by UP Warriorz for Rs 1.1 crore in 2026 after a fierce bidding war.
This time, veteran leg-spinner Asha found no takers at Rs 30 lakh. Purvaja Verlekar, former UP Warriorz batter Vrinda Dinesh, former RCB player Gautami Naik, former Mumbai Indians batter Humaira Kazi and Shweta Sehrawat, who was UP Warriorz’s lone retention ahead of 2026 WPL auction, all went unsold. Unsold players could still be picked up in the accelerated rounds later in the auction
--IANS
nr/hs
