OTD | Smriti Mandhana became the most expensive player bought during inaugural Women’s Premier League auction in 2023

It was one of the historic days two years back on this day [February 13] as the auction for the inaugural edition of the Women’s Premier League in 2023 was held in Mumbai. The day witnessed some of the astonishing bids by the WPL teams to pick the talented women’s cricketers across Indian and overseas players, be it capped or uncapped. 

In the same line of events, this day also happened to be one of the memorable days in the career of the star India batter Smriti Mandhana, as she became the most expensive player in the inaugural edition of the tournament. 

Mandhana was bought by one of the most celebrated franchises, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for an amount of INR 3.4 crores from a base price of INR 50 Lakhs. Later, she was appointed as the skipper of the side. 

Smriti Mandhana-led RCB won the WPL title after miserable 2023 edition

However, both Smriti Mandhana and her side RCB Women failed to live up to the expectations of the fans in the first edition of WPL. The team finished in the fourth spot, with only two wins and six defeats in their eight games in the tournament’s league stage, getting only four points. 

Speaking of Smriti, she could score only 149 runs in eight innings, with a dismal batting average of 18.62, without even a single century. It ended up as a ‘WPL season to forget’ for Smriti and RCB Women. 

Subsequently, Smriti and Co. made a strong comeback in the second season of the tournament in 2024. The team performed brilliantly throughout the tournament and ended up clinching the title. It was also the first-ever title for RCB in both IPL and WPL since the inception of the men’s franchise tournament 17 years back in 2008.

Mandhana also performed quite well in the second WPL edition, finishing as the fourth leading run-scorer with 300 runs in 10 innings with a decent batting average of 30.00, hitting two half-centuries. 

Disclaimer: This Exclusive News is based on the author’s understanding, analysis, and instinct. As you review this information, consider the points mentioned and form your own conclusions.

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