During the lead-up to the 2024 Women's Premier League (WPL) season, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) franchise have invested significantly in strengthening their women's team during the WPL Auction 2024. With seven vacant slots in the RCB squad, the team completed their 18-member roster by acquiring the services of seven players through the auction.
To overhaul their team, the Royal Challengers released seven players, among them prominent names like Megan Schutt, Dane Van Niekerk, and Erin Burns. Despite these signings, the RCB still have as much as Rs 1.05 crore remaining in their purse.
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The Bengaluru-based franchise demonstrated confidence in the abilities of Indian women's bowler Ekta Bisht, securing her services for the team with the highest bid of Rs 60 lakhs. Additionally, the franchise allocated Rs 40 lakhs to acquire the services of Georgia Wareham, who plays for Australia and will join her national teammates Ellyse Perry and Sophie Molineux in the side.
Wareham played for the Gujarat Giants in the inaugural WPL 2023 season. Notably, RCB refrained from making multi-crore investments in any other female player during the auction.
Some of the other players who have been signed by the franchise are Kate Cross (England, Rs 30 lakh), Shubha Satheesh (India, Rs 10 lakh), Sabbhineni Meghana (India, Rs 30 lakh), Simran Bahadur (India, Rs 30 lakh), Sophie Molineux (Australia, Rs 30 lakh).
Retained Players: Asha Shobana, Disha Kasat, Ellyse Perry*, Heather Knight*, Indrani Roy, Kanika Ahuja, Renuka Singh, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil, Smriti Mandhana, Sophie Devine*
New players: Georgia Wareham (Australia, Rs 40 lakh), Ekta Bisht (India, Rs 60 lakh), Kate Cross (England, Rs 30 lakh), Shubha Satheesh (India, Rs 10 lakh), S. Meghana (India, Rs 30 lakh), Simran Bahadur (India, Rs 30 lakh), Sophie Molineux (Australia, RS 30 lakh)
Released Players: Dané Van Niekerk*, Erin Burns*, Komal Zanzad, Megan Schutt*, Poonam Khemnar, Preeti Bose, Sahana Pawar, Georgia Wareham, Ekta Bisht, Kate Cross, Shubha Satheesh, S. Meghana, Simran Bahadur, Sophie Molineux
RCB Full Squad
Asha Shobana, Disha Kasat, Ellyse Perry*, Heather Knight*, Indrani Roy, Kanika Ahuja, Renuka Singh, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil, Smriti Mandhana, Sophie Devine*,
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