Australia’s Alyssa Healy being unsold was one of the biggest upsets at the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 auction. When the auction started in New Delhi, the wicketkeeper-batter was the first person selected from the eight-player marquee list, but she didn’t get any offers. Teams seemed to have been holding back at the time, focussing on other targets in hopes of returning to Healy in the expedited round.
Her name did not reappear in the auction, though, because no franchise put her on their wishlist after the accelerated round started. After the game, UP Warriorz (UPW) head coach Abhishek Nayar and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) assistant coach Anya Shrubsole gave their reasons for not chasing the Australia captain.
“It was unexpected that Alyssa Healy was unsold for a variety of reasons. Your options are restricted when you can only have four foreign players [in the XI], and many teams favour all-rounders in their lineup. Nayar was cited by ESPNcricinfo as saying, “It’s a difficult situation for someone of her stature.”
Georgia Voll provides us with some offspin, and our top order is really potent. Going for Healy didn’t make sense for us since Richa Ghosh [as a wicketkeeper-batter] was in the top five, Shrubsole said.
The Delhi Capitals’ (DC) head coach, Jonathan Batty, said that Healy was discussed, but in the end, the choice came down to keeping the squad flexible.
After being released by the UP Warriorz (UPW), who had previously paid INR 70 lakh for her first two seasons, Healy went into the auction with a base price of INR 50 lakh. Despite missing the last edition due to a foot ailment, she had an outstanding WPL record with 428 runs in 17 games at an average of 26.75 at a strike rate of 130.48. She recently scored back-to-back ODI World Cup hundreds against Bangladesh and India while playing for the Sydney Sixers in the WBBL.
Wicketkeepers were in high demand, even if opening batters and possible captains were thought to be in low demand. For INR 50 lakh, the Gujarat Giants (GG) acquired Yastika Bhatia, who is presently recuperating from an injury, and kept Beth Mooney. For a total of INR 60 lakh, the Delhi Capitals (DC) acquired Lizelle Lee and Taniyaa Bhatia, while UP paid INR 10 lakh for the untested Shipra Giri to be their only keeper. Richa Ghosh remained with the RCB, while G Kamalini was retained by the Mumbai Indians (MI).
A number of well-known international players were also left unsold, including Alana King, Amanda-Jade Wellington, Darcie Brown, Heather Knight, and Alice Capsey of England, as well as Chamari Athapaththu of Sri Lanka. Amelia Kerr was the highest-paid foreign player at the auction, having been purchased by the Mumbai Indians for an astounding INR 3.00 crore. Meg Lanning, who was purchased by UP Warriorz for INR 1.90 crore, and Sophie Devine, who joined the Gujarat Giants for INR 2 crore, came after her.
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