The Women’s Premier League (WPL 2026) auction will reportedly take place in the November 26-27 window in New Delhi. As per reports, all five teams – Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Gujarat Giants, Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz – have been informed about the venue informally. Meanwhile, the BCCI – which earlier hinted at the auction taking place on November 29 or 30 – is yet to finalize the date.
WPL auction in Nov, retentions rates revealed
As per Cricbuzz, each team is allowed to make a maximum of five retentions before the WPL 2026 auction. Despite the auction being a mega one, the process is reportedly set to be completed in a single day. Franchises have been asked to submit their list of retentions by November 5.
The team’s first retention will cost the franchise Rs 3.5 crore while the fifth and final retention will cost Rs 50 lakh. There are five Right to Match (RTM) cards available for the teams but that will be based on the number of retentions that a team makes. The more the number of retentions, the lesser RTM options the teams will have.
Each team is allowed to retain three capped Indian players and not more than two overseas stars. The guideline price for retaining an uncapped player will be Rs 50 lakh. Each team can retain a maximum of two uncapped players.
Retention 1: Rs 3.5 crore
Retention 2: Rs 2.5 crore
Retention 3: Rs 1.75 crore
Retention 4: Rs 1 crore
Retention 5: Rs 50 lakh
All five retentions: Rs 9.25 Cr
Total purse: Rs 15 crore
“While the amount paid to an individual player may differ from guideline price, the total amount based on the number of players retained will be used for salary cap calculation,” the BCCI said in a recent note to the franchises.
Earlier, reports stated that teams like RCB, MI and DC were against the mega auction. All three teams feel that dismantling a team that has taken three years to put together at a time when WPL is getting established could be counter productive. On the other hand, Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz are eager to revamp their squads and back the idea of having a mega auction.
