NEW DELHI: The blockbuster clash between Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians on March 4 at the DY Patil Stadium will open the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said on Tuesday.
The BCCI announced the full schedule for the WPL 2023 after the successful conclusion of the WPL Auction in Mumbai on Monday.
"In its first season, the WPL will stage a total of 20 league matches and two play-off games that will be played in a duration of 23 days," the BCCI said in a statement.
"The WPL will have its first double-header on March 5, where Royal Challengers Bangalore will square off against Delhi Capitals at the Brabourne Stadium. And in the evening game, UP Warriorz face Gujarat Giants at the DY Patil Stadium," the statement added.
There will be four double-headers with the first match starting at 3:30 PM IST. All the evening matches will start at 7:30 PM IST.
"The final game of the league stage will be played between UP Warriorz and Delhi Capitals on March 21 at the Brabourne Stadium. The Eliminator will be played at the DY Patil Stadium on March 24. And the summit clash of the WPL 2023 will be played at the Brabourne Stadium on March 26," the statement further added.
In its inaugural edition, five teams – Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore and UP Warriorz splurged their purse to acquire some of the best talents in the international and domestic circuit.
1/10:WPL Auction: When Smriti Mandhana stole the thunder outside a stadium
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2/10:Smriti Mandhana
<p>Smriti Mandhana fetched a Rs 3.40 crore deal in the inaugural WPL auction as RCB pipped Mumbai Indians in a bidding war on Monday.</p>Getty Images
3/10:Deepti Sharma
<p>The second-costliest Indian player was all-rounder Deepti Sharma, whose induction cost UP Warriorz Rs 2.6 crore.</p>Getty Images
4/10:Raking in the moolah
<p>Deepti stands at number four in the overall list of costliest players in WPL.</p>Getty Images
5/10:Shafali Verma
<p>Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues were picked by Delhi Capitals for Rs 2 crore and Rs 2.20 crore respectively.</p>Getty Images
6/10:Jemimah Rodrigues
<p>Jemimah Rodrigues stands as the fifth-most expensive player in the overall list of players sold in the auctions.</p>Getty Images
7/10:Harmanpreet Kaur
<p>India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur cost Mumbai Indians Rs 1.80 crore - much lower than several of her colleagues in the Indian team and peers in other teams.</p>Getty Images
8/10:Harleen Deol
<p>Gujarat mostly bought foreign players and also bought Harleen Deol for Rs 40 lakh.</p>Getty Images
9/10:Ashleigh Gardner
<p>Gujarat bought Ashleigh Gardner and Mumbai Indians bought Nat Sciver-Brunt at Rs 3.20 crore each - the second and third costliest players.</p>Getty Images
10/10:Ellyse Perry
<p>Ellyse Perry received a Rs 1.70 crore winning bid from RCB, which also got Sophie Devine at the base price of Rs 50 lakh.</p>Getty ImagesIndia's Smriti Mandhana was the top buy as she was sold for a whopping Rs 3.40 crore to Royal Challengers Bangalore. Team India captain Harmanpreet Kaur was sold to Mumbai Indians for Rs 1.80 crore.
Among the foreign players, Australia all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner and England all-rounder Natalie Sciver were the top buys as they were sold to Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians for Rs 3.20 crore respectively.
