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The highly anticipated player retention list for the 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL) is scheduled for release this Thursday. This announcement will follow the conclusion of the fourth T20 international match between India and Australia, currently being played in Gold Coast, Queensland. Sources indicate that all five WPL franchises have successfully submitted their final lists of retained players before the Wednesday deadline.
Fans can expect several prominent names to be secured by their respective teams, while other star players will enter the upcoming mega auction. This significant player auction is slated to take place in New Delhi on November 27th. The official confirmation of the WPL retentions will be made public shortly after the men’s T20I encounter concludes, providing clarity on which players will remain with their current teams and who will be up for grabs.
Each franchise has specific guidelines for retention: a maximum of three capped Indian players, two overseas players, and two uncapped Indian players can be kept. A key condition is that if a team opts to retain five players, at least one of them must be an uncapped Indian talent. The total purse for the auction has been set at INR 15 crore. Retention amounts are structured, with Player 1 earning INR 3.5 crore, Player 2 INR 2.5 crore, Player 3 INR 1.75 crore, Player 4 INR 1 crore, and Player 5 INR 50 lakh. The Right to Match (RTM) option will also be available, allowing teams to re-sign players from their 2025 squads, with a limit of five RTMs per franchise. The purse deductions will vary based on the number of players retained, ranging from INR 9.25 crore for five players down to INR 3.5 crore for one. Teams that retain fewer players will have more RTM options available, and those utilizing all five retentions will lose their RTM privileges.
