Delhi: Women's Premier League (WPL) mini-auction on October 28 in Kochi means spend money and make your team better. There are 5 franchise teams in which a total of 27 players can fit (out of which 7 are foreigners) and now each team has to decide what its needs are but also keep in mind the money left in its purse (how much of the total Rs 15 crore has been spent on its existing players).

UP Warriors have the biggest budget because they released 9 players. On the other hand, 'Mumbai Indians' have a purse of only Rs 1 crore left at 7 places. Reigning champions Royal ​​Challengers Bangalore have retained all the key players from their title-winning team but Ellyse Perry is also returning. A total of Rs 8.15 crore is left with all 5 teams. So let's see the account of each team:

UP Warriors purse Rs 3.65 crore, 7 places vacant (2 of them foreigners):

After finishing bottom last season, there is a chance to rebuild the team and also have the biggest budget. First of all, we need a reliable wicketkeeper who can also score runs. Although they have Sophie Ecclestone, Deepti Sharma and Shikha Pandey in bowling, they need more supporting bowlers. This will be at the top of their 'shopping list'.

Gujarat Giants purse Rs 1.25 crore, 3 places vacant (1 of them foreign):

Maximum 15 players have been retained and there is money to buy players for only 3 places. They have a strong core of overseas players with Ashley Gardner, Beth Mooney, Georgia Wareham, Kim Garth and Sophie Devine. On the other hand, Yastika Bhatia is also making a comeback. He must just focus on a reliable finisher.

Royal Challengers Bangalore purse Rs 1.15 crore, 5 places vacant (2 of them foreigners):

The return of Ellyse Perry is a good news but Grace Harris is gone (237 runs in 9 matches at 178.1 strike rate last season) so it will not be easy to replace her. If Harris comes in the auction and the price is right, then the team can bring him back. However, the core of the championship-winning team is intact, so there is no need for major changes.

Delhi Capitals purse Rs 1.10 crore, 5 places vacant (1 of them foreign):

The four-time runner-up team has retained 13 players. There is a need for a reliable wicketkeeper who can bat in the top or middle order, thereby maintaining flexibility in the playing eleven.

Mumbai Indians purse Rs 1 crore, 7 places vacant (including 1 foreigner):

Having only Rs 1 crore with you is a big challenge. They need domestic players. On top of that, the compulsion to release G Kamalini (not available due to the 2027 Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup) made matters worse. The good news is that Amanjot Kaur is fit now. Due to low budget, they cannot compete for any expensive bid, which means cheap domestic players will have to be selected. New head coach Luke Williams is facing a big challenge.

It is clear from this discussion that domestic players can benefit the most in this mini auction. There is less money in the purse of all the teams, so very big bids are unlikely to be seen. UP Warriors is the only team which has money left for more players even after spending big on one player. Therefore, this is a great opportunity for players like Vrinda Dinesh, G Trisha and Ella Padmaja.

It is also worth noting that there are not many days between the start of the domestic T20 season and the auction. The auction is taking place just two days after the start of the domestic T20 season. This means that there is little chance of a player being selected solely on the basis of this year's domestic performance. Before the auction, teams do not have any days to watch the match, assess the performance and take any decision. Instead, franchise teams will focus more on the players' performances in state T20 tournaments (like the Maharani Cup or Maharashtra Women's T20).

These tournaments provide a better opportunity to understand how the domestic players have performed throughout the year. What's more, teams can understand which role a player can fit in as per their needs. In such a situation, instead of waiting for new performance, the team will depend on its current assessment, state tournament, training camp and trials. The team that identifies the right players for the required roles, rather than chasing big names, will leave Kochi with the right squad for WPL 2027.