India's World Cup heroes Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Shafali Verma lead the roster of retained players, as all five Women's Premier League (WPL) teams finalised their line-ups before the 2026 Mega Auction.
The retention phase offered a mix of continuity and surprises, with a few star players staying while some notable names were released for the bidding war.
Interestingly, Australia's Alyssa Healy and Meg Lanning, along with New Zealand star Amelia Kerr are set to feature in the auction pool. At the same time, Deepti Sharma, who earned the 2025 Women's World Cup Player of the Tournament title, has also been released.
The official retention list shows that the Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals, last season's champions and finalists, have both kept the full quota of five players allowed. Royal Challengers Bengaluru chose to retain four, Gujarat Giants held on to two, while UP Warriorz decided to stick with just one.
The 2026 WPL Mega Auction is scheduled for Nov. 27 in Delhi.
List Of Players Retained Ahead Of WPL 2026
Delhi Capitals:
Annabel Sutherland
Marizanne Kapp
Jemimah Rodrigues
Shafali Verma
Niki Prasad
Mumbai Indians:
Harmanpreet Kaur
Nat Sciver-Brunt
Amanjot Kaur
G Kamalini
Hayley Matthews
Royal Challengers Bengaluru:
Smriti Mandhana
Ellyse Perry
Richa Ghosh
Shreyanka Patil
Gujarat Giants:
Ashleigh Gardner
Beth Mooney
UP Warriorz:
Shweta Sehrawat
List Of Players Released Ahead Of WPL 2026
Meg Lanning, Alyssa Healy, Deepti Sharma, Laura Wolvaardt, Sophie Ecclestone, Amanjot Kaur and Amelia Kerr are set to be among the big names to enter the Women's Premier League (WPL) auction later this month as teams announced their retentions on Thursday.
Sophie Molineux, Renuka Singh Thakur, Harleen Deol, Sneh Rana, and Danni Wyatt are other key players who were released by their respective franchises.
Under the WPL's retention rules, each franchise can hold on to a maximum of three capped Indian players, two overseas names, and two uncapped Indian talents. For sides opting to keep five players, at least one must be an uncapped Indian.
The 2026 season will also see the debut of the Right-to-Match (RTM) card, enabling teams to re-sign a member of their 2025 squad by matching the highest auction bid. This addition injects a new layer of strategy into the bidding process, giving clubs a chance to reclaim key players without exhausting their retention options.
Every team will head into the auction with a total purse of Rs 15 crore, though the remaining amount will vary depending on how many players they've chosen to keep. The league has outlined the following deductions:
Five retained players: Rs 9.25 crore deducted
Four retained players: Rs 8.75 crore deducted
Three retained players: Rs 7.75 crore deducted
Two retained players: Rs 6 crore deducted
One retained player: Rs 3.5 crore deducted
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