Women's Premier League: Team & format guide with Smriti Mandhana & Nat Sciver-Brunt to feature
- Published
England spinner Sophie Ecclestone (left), India batter Smriti Mandhana (centre) and England all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt (right) are set to be key figures at their sides
Saturday, 4 March is set to be a historic day for women's cricket.
The inaugural Women's Premier League gets under way with Gujarat Giants taking on Mumbai Indians in Mumbai.
It will be the most lucrative competition in the history of the women's game with players earning up to six-figure sums for the 22-day tournament.
The WPL is the sister competition to the men's Indian Premier League and replaces the three-team T20 Challenge Cup which was previously held in India from 2018.
The format
There are five franchises representing different cities in India; Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore and UP Warriorz.
That is half the number of teams competing in the IPL - but it is an appropriate starting point for the women's game and may increase in future editions.
The teams will play each other in a double round-robin format, and the three sides with the highest points go through to the play-offs. The table toppers will automatically head to the final, with second and third playing in an eliminator on 24 March.
All of the matches are taking place in Mumbai and the final will be played on 26 March at the Brabourne Stadium.
The teams
On 13 February, while the Women's T20 World Cup was being played in South Africa, players were awaiting their fate to see if a WPL team had bid for them.
The teams were decided entirely by auction from a pool of about 1,500 players who self-registered. Each franchise had £1.2 million to spend on their squad.
Here's an introduction to all five teams...
Delhi Capitals
England's Alice Capsey (second left) was a £75,000 purchase by Delhi Capitals
Coach: Jonathan Batty Captain: Meg Lanning Vice-captain: Jemimah Rodrigues
Meg Lanning has just guided Australia to a fourth T20 World Cup title as captain, but can her strong leadership steer Delhi to the first WPL trophy?
They certainly have aggressive batters in their line-up, including India's fiery 19-year-old Shafali Verma and England's explosive 18-year-old Alice Capsey.
At the top of the innings, Jemimah Rodrigues is a classy manipulator of the ball alongside the irrepressible Lanning. The option to have Marizanne Kapp and Laura Harris as finishers creates a solid top six. Plus, Jasia Akhtar is a hard-hitting run-scorer and all-rounder.
Kapp, a Women's Big Bash and Hundred winner, has dominated across franchise leagues with the new ball and has earned the player of the match award in a number of finals.
India's Shikha Pandey is a huge threat with her in-swing, while rising talent Titas Sadhu, 18, is an exciting prospect looking to build on her impressive U19 World Cup performances. Pace off from spin trio Jess Jonassen, Poonam Yadav and Radha Yadav complements the seam attack.
Capitals are the only side to have an ICC associate nation player in Tara Norris, which means they can play five overseas players.
The USA left-arm seamer may not be the most experienced overseas signing but is no stranger to franchise competitions having featured in The Hundred and the Kia Super League.
Gujarat Giants
Australia's Ash Gardner was named player of the tournament at the T20 World Cup
Coach: Rachael Haynes Captain: Beth Mooney
The Gujarat Giants are the most Australia-dominated side in the WPL.
Ash Gardner, who was bought for the joint-highest price for an overseas player, is an excellent all-round signing and can be a match-winner with either her bat or off-spin.
Left-hander Beth Mooney also boosts the batting line-up while Annabel Sutherland and Georgia Wareham add to the star-studded depth.
England's Sophia Dunkley has proven her capabilities as an opener in T20s, while Deandra Dottin is another seasoned great of the franchise game.
Sneh Rana's off-spin will be valuable but a few more outright seamers would have balanced the side as Gujarat's bowling attack is dominated by spin.
Unlike the other teams, they haven't invested as much in the highest quality of local talent, particularly in the batting department.
Mumbai Indians
England all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt was sold for £320,000 - the joint-highest price for an overseas player
Coach: Charlotte Edwards Captain: Harmanpreet Kaur
The sister franchise of the five-time IPL champions invested heavily to secure Nat Sciver-Brunt for £320,000 (joining Gujarat's Gardner as the most expensive overseas star) and Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur for £180,000. Almost half of their budget was spent on just two players.
Nonetheless, the dominance of all-rounders in this team creates superb depth. Captain Harmanpreet could give the ball to any number of players in key moments.
While the batters may not be the biggest hitters, they should be able to take control of games. Hayley Matthews is a seasoned franchise player in good touch and Harmanpreet is a premier Indian bat. But are they missing a big hitter for the powerplay?
New Zealand's Amelia Kerr is one of the world's best leg-spinners and can bat up the order to anchor an innings. Chloe Tryon bludgeons the ball, while Heather Graham provides another steady middle-order option.
Pooja Vastrakar provides fast bowling, but, unlike other teams, Mumbai don't have an experienced headline overseas seam option.
Royal Challengers Bangalore
India's Smriti Mandhana will captain Royal Challengers Bangalore in the WPL
Head coach: Ben Sawyer Captain: Smriti Mandhana
RCB's motto is 'play bold' and that is precisely what their side is capable of. They are an all-round powerhouse led by the tournament's most expensive player - captain and hard-hitting opener Smriti Mandhana.
The top order will be explosive with the likes of Sophie Devine, Ellyse Perry, Heather Knight and Dane van Niekerk strong options. Wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh brings energy in the middle order too.
The Australia pair of Megan Schutt and Perry, alongside Devine and India's Renuka Singh Thakur provides, a strong seam attack.
The squad has nine all-rounders and plenty of options. It will be interesting to see how their eight uncapped domestic players fare. But there shouldn't be any concerns given the depth of experience in the overseas ranks.
With three current and former international captains in the side, there should be plenty of knowledge transfer to the young guns.
But with only four overseas spots available in this team, some big names will have to miss out - and England captain Knight might have a fight on to make the XI.
With plenty of spin options from domestic talent, and arguably a better spinner in Hundred and WBBL winner Van Niekerk, will Knight's batting alone get her in the side?
UP Warriorz
England spinner Sophie Ecclestone is the number one-ranked bowler in T20 cricket
Coach: Jon Lewis Captain: Alyssa Healy
Up Warriorz, who will be coached by England head coach Jon Lewis, have a core spin trio of Sophie Ecclestone, Rajeshwari Gayakwad and the second-most expensive India player Deepti Sharma - arguably the best spin attack in the competition.
Speedy Soppadhandi Yashasri impressed at the U19 World Cup with the ball and is joined by South African Shabnim Ismail who almost hit 80mph at the T20 World Cup.
Destructive wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy will kick-start the innings, backed up by Aussie team-mate Tahlia McGrath and India's U19 World Cup-winning opener Shweta Sehrawat.
The challenge Warriorz might face is in the middle order. Devika Vaidya and Deepti should offer useful runs but the batting depth doesn't feel quite as strong as other teams. Ecclestone may be called upon to prove that she is a genuine all-rounder.
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