How Women's T20 World Cup teams are bracing for WPL auction

The entire 15-member Australian squad is on the WPL auction shortlist, including captain Meg Lanning, vice-captain Alyssa Healy, star allrounder Ellyse Perry, big-hitting allrounders Grace Harris and Ashleigh Gradner. (File photo)

World Cups are the pinnacle of cricket. And when they come around, the buzz is commensurately substantial. At the ongoing eighth edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa, which kicked off on Friday in Cape Town, the vibe is similar.

But with the players' auction for the inaugural Women’s Premier League (WPL) scheduled for Monday, February 13, with Mumbai as the venue, the world event in South Africa has had to share the spotlight with the upcoming Indian domestic T20 league that’s being deemed a “game-changer” for women’s cricket.

Here's how some of the teams, and their captains, at the World Cup have been gearing up for the WPL auction, which falls on the fourth day of the world tournament.

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New Zealand captain Sophie Devine’s pragmatism

During the captains’ press conference on Monday in Cape Town, Devine hit the nail on its head when asked about how teams can best navigate the two concurrent developments of seismic proportions in women’s cricket: A World Cup that’s likely to be most followed ever and a first-of-its-kind IPL-style auction that could land many female cricketers the biggest payday of their careers.

“It's the elephant in the room. It’s a really unique experience. It’s enormous,” said Devine, one of the 19 New Zealanders to have been shortlisted up for the auction. “You talk about glass ceilings, and I think the WPL is going to be the next stage and we are very excited about it and it’s something female cricketers have never went through before.”

“On every scale it’s going to be awkward. That's the word we have spoken about,” she added. “Some people are going to be picked up, some won’t. And you are going to get a value attached to what you are worth which, as human beings, is not the nicest (thing), to be perfectly honest. But it's also a job and it's what we've put our names in for."

Devine, who featured in the Women’s T20 Challenge, the three-team precursor to the WPL, also said that the forthcoming league will be an "enormous step in women's cricket". She, however, admitted that one would be "naive to think that it's not going to be a distraction".

World champs Australia focused on keeping emotions in check…

…And there’s a reason why they should be doing that. One, they are gunning for a successful title defence and their sixth finish atop the podium in the showpiece 20-over event.

Two, with pretty much their entire 15-member squad on the WPL auction shortlist, including captain Meg Lanning, vice-captain Alyssa Healy, star allrounder Ellyse Perry, big-hitting allrounders Grace Harris and Ashleigh Gradner, not only many are expected to get bids but also go for big money in the five-franchise WPL auction battle.

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“Obviously, it's probably not ideal in a World Cup scenario, but that is what it is,” Australia head coach Shelley Nitschke said on Wednesday in Stellenbosch, when asked how she was looking to help the squad keep things in perspective. “It is something that was spoken about rather than just ignore it.”

At 28, the Australians make up the most players from a single country on the final list drawn up for the WPL auction. Though they don’t play any match at the World Cup on auction day, they take on Bangladesh the day after.

“Everyone knows it's coming,” she added, “but we know that players have nominated, so we've actually spoken about it as a group and spoken about how players might manage the ups and downs that the auction will bring and just making sure that we're still focused on the World Cup.

“That's what we're here to do. But just understanding that with that auction, will come a range of emotions and making sure that we are switched on for the game after that.”

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The West Indies way: England game an audition

West Indies captain Hayley Matthews, who played for Velocity under Mithali Raj and then Deepti Sharma at the Women’s T20 Challenge, has reasoned that with the WPL auction looming, there’s all the more reason for her side to punch above their weight and kick off their T20 World Cup campaign on a high.

Their opponents, England, are overwhelming favourites to win the contest against them on Saturday in Paarl. But Matthews believes strong individual performances from the 2016 T20 world champions against England can help many of the 23 auction hopefuls from the Caribbean gain visibility ahead of Monday’s big event.

“We all understand that there are limited spots within the tournament (WPL),” said Matthews, a T20 World Cup winner, ahead of their England fixture at Boland Park. “But I think this first game against England is a perfect opportunity for many of us to get out there and kind of make a name and, hopefully, put an opportunity for us if it presents itself in that auction.

“So, like we always discuss within the team, good performances for West Indies is what's really going to get you going in franchise cricket. And that's what we're focusing on at the moment.”

‘Not an elephant in the room,’ says England captain

A sought-after name at overseas franchise leagues and a World Cup-winning captain from the 2017 50-over edition, Heather Knight believes treating the WPL auction as a “bonus” might be a good way to appreciate the import of their T20 World Cup campaign, too.

“I think it'd be naive to think it isn't a slight distraction,” Knight said of the auction in Paarl on Friday. “I think obviously it's on everyone's minds. The draft is going to be on our second game against Ireland. So, I think for us as a group, we had a chat about it this morning actually.

“And it's just about talking about it. I think it is a really healthy thing. It doesn't need to be an elephant in the room. I think it's a really positive thing for the game. And it's something we'd have to start getting used to as female cricketers.

“Obviously, The Hundred draft is coming up as well. And it's coming into the game more and more. And how we manage it as individuals is really important. I think us as a group, we're just going to be really open, try and talk about it and just see it as a bonus. And I think knowing that each individual player's worth to the England team will not change dependent on what happens. And being prepared that some strange things might happen.

“I think you look at the first couple of years of the men's IPL and a few strange things happened. So, I think staying really tight as a group and seeing it as a bonus is a really important thing. But I think it's something we're having to get used to as cricketers as the landscape changes a lot and more drafts and more options come into the game.”

How might England tackle any news emerging from the Jio Convention Centre in Mumbai, the WPL auction venue, on what will be a match day for them at the World Cup?

“(…) we’re playing against Ireland on the day. So, that's going to be our primary focus. There might be a chance that there's some stuff beforehand and it's just going to be up to individuals to decide whether they want to know or not, basically, and respecting teammates and what they want to do.

“But once we're at the ground, obviously focus is completely on the game and taking on Ireland on that day.

What might Knight herself do?

“I haven't decided yet. We'll have to see,” she said, smiling.