November 6, 2025 : Player of the Tournament in India’s Women’s World Cup-winning campaign, Deepti Sharma, has been released ahead of the mega auction for the 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL) season. In contrast, six members of the champion squad, including Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, and Jemimah Rodrigues, feature among the high-profile players retained by their respective franchises.
According to a report by ESPNCricinfo, the six retained players from India’s World Cup-winning team also include Shafali Verma, the Player of the Match in the final against South Africa last Sunday, along with Amanjot Kaur and wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh.
Meanwhile, global stars Alyssa Healy and Meg Lanning, along with New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr, are set to enter the auction pool after being released by their respective teams.
Among the most notable exits, Deepti’s release stands out. The all-rounder made history during India’s triumphant World Cup run, becoming the first player ever to score more than 200 runs and claim 20 or more wickets in a single edition. She had also captained the UP Warriorz in Healy’s absence during the 2025 season.
The report further added that the Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals, the defending champions and runners-up respectively, are the only franchises to have retained five players, the maximum permitted under WPL rules. Royal Challengers Bengaluru have retained four players, while Gujarat Giants have retained two and UP Warriorz have retained only one.
The deadline for submitting the retention list was November 5, but the franchises have yet to make an official announcement. Here is what the reported retention list looks like…
Delhi Capitals: Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Niki Prasad
Mumbai Indians: Harmanpreet Kaur, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amanjot Kaur, G Kamalini and Hayley Matthews
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil
Gujarat Giants: Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney
UP Warriorz: Shweta Sehrawat.
According to the retention rule for the WPL, each franchise can retain a maximum of three capped Indian players, two overseas players, and two uncapped Indian players. In case a franchise wants to retain five players, at least one should be a capped player.
The upcoming auction will also see the use of the right-to-match (RTM) option for the first time in WPL, which will allow a team to buy back a player who was part of their squad in 2025.
Summary:
In a major WPL 2026 update, World Cup star Deepti Sharma was released, while champions Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues were among six retained players.