Everything you need to know about the first-ever Women’s Premier League

A few months ago, I went with my mother, for my first-ever women’s cricket match at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai where India was playing against Australia in a T20 match. I had been to cricket matches before, but there was something extraordinarily charming about this one. The stadium was brimming with fans, men and women both, cheering for their favourite players. The ever-frequent chants of ‘India, India,’ echoed through the stadium and beyond, for the women in blue were truly killing it. We lost the match that day, but (not to sound corny or anything), but I knew we had won immensely in bringing women’s cricket to the forefront. 

And now, the inaugural season of the Women’s Premier League is all set to kick off on March 4, 2023, in Mumbai, and we can hardly wait. The opening ceremony will witness performances by celebrities such as Kriti Sanon, Kiara Advani and AP Dhillon. The tournament will be played in the same format as the Men’s Indian Premier League and is expected to draw in large crowds. The league consists of five teams including Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Delhi Capitals and UP Warriors. The first match will be between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Giants.

The player auction which took place a few weeks ago saw some of the biggest names—such as Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur—being auctioned off as players, for large amounts. Mandhana, who has been the biggest buy of the season, went to the RCB squad. Australian all-rounder, Ashleigh Gardner was one of the biggest international buys, at ₹3.2 crores for Gujarat Giants. Indian captain, Harmanpreet Kaur was bagged by the Mumbai Indians franchise. The young and emerging star, Jemimah Rodrigues will be playing for Delhi Capitals this season. Also keep an eye out for batter Yastika Bhatia, and bowler Deepti Sharma, among many others. Just as the IPL did, we hope to see the WPL bringing in young players from the nooks and corners of India, and giving them a platform to play the game. 

The Women’s Premier League will be held from March 4 to 26, with all matches being played at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai and the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai. You can watch the live telecast of the matches on Jio Cinema and the Sports 18 network. Tickets for the matches are also available at BookMyShow. In fact, the BCCI just announced that tickets will be priced at ₹100, to draw in crowds. 

We wish nothing but the best to every single player out there and await to see the tournament unravel itself.