Smriti moneydhana!

India vicecaptain Smriti Mandhana 26 missed out on Sundayrsquos key T20 World Cup clash against Pakistan through injury But she didnrsquot miss out on big bucks during the Womenrsquos Premier League WPL player auction in Mumbai on MondayMandhana whose base price was Rs 50 lakh emerged the costliest player in WPL when she was picked by Royal Challengers Bangalore RCB for Rs 340 croreMumbai Indians MI got India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur for Rs 180 crore RCB appeared to have planned their purchase well and did everything to get the stylish opening batter the first buy of the day The Bangalore franchise spent more than a quarter of their total purse of R12 crore for MandhanaRCB Delhi Capitals MI and UP Warriorz showed interest in Kaur but MI had the final say spending Rs 180 crore RCBrsquos Director of Cricket Operations Mike Hesson revealed why they went for top players in the first round itself ldquoEverybody knows Smriti Ellyse Perry RCB spent R170 crore for her We were pretty committed to a couple of people we wanted to get We are happy to get quality players like Smriti Sophie Devine New Zealand allrounder for R50 lakh and Perry in the first group a dream for us reallyrdquo Hesson said during the press conference at the Jio World Convention Centre at BKCHesson hinted that Mandhana will lead RCB ldquoSmriti has got plenty of captaincy experience She is one of the players who knows the conditions well For leadership you need senior players around you In the first set we have got some highly experienced senior playersrdquo said HessonMumbairsquos Jemimah Rodrigues who starred in Sundayrsquos win over Pakistan at Cape Town went to Delhi Capitals for Rs 220 crore after evoking interest on the MI table Indiarsquos U19 T20 World Cupwinning captain Shafali Verma Rs 2 crore and Australia skipper Meg Lanning Rs 110 crore are also in the Delhi Capitals camp while Gujarat Giants successfully bid Rs 320 crore for Australian allrounder Ashleigh GardnerWhere captaincy is concerned Delhi Capitalsrsquo owner Parth Jindal remarked ldquoItrsquos too early for that decision on captain Of course there are captaincy options One is an U19 World Cupwinning captain Lanning is a legend of the game Jemimah too is a wonderful reader of the game but it all depends on the coach in the end and who else we pick in the endrdquoReaction timelsquoI have always seen Mumbai Indians do well in the IPL and now I too have a chance to be part of the Mumbai Indians team Hope we will make a good team Itrsquos a gamechanger for all of us because we are going to experience this kind of pressure for the first time I am very excited and at the same time this will entirely change womenrsquos cricket not only in India but world cricket toorsquoHarmanpreet Kaur MIrsquoWe waited for this opportunity and since I am from UP Uttar Pradesh it is a great feeling I want to contribute as much as possible for UP WarriorzrsquoDeepti Sharma UP WarriorzlsquoItrsquos been over last 10 years wersquove been watching auctions of menrsquos players It is such a big moment for womenrsquos cricket too to have an auction of this sort The whole thing is excitingrsquo Smriti Mandhana RCBAlso ReadSmriti Mandhana doubtful starter for Indias T20 World Cup opener against PakistanTop 5 buysRs 34crSmriti Mandhana Royal Challengers BangaloreRs 32crNat SciverBrunt Mumbai IndiansRs 32crAshleigh Gardner Gujarat GiantsRs 26crDeepti Sharma UP WarriorzRs 22crJemimah Rodrigues Delhi Capitals