Having been roped in by Mumbai Indians for INR 1.80 Crore at the inaugural Women’s Premier League (WPL) auction on Monday (February 13), India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur expressed her desire to emulate the feats of MI’s men’s team.

“I have always seen Mumbai Indians do well in the IPL and now I also have a chance to be part of the Mumbai Indians team and I hope we will make a good team. It’s a game-changer for all of us because we will experience this kind of pressure for the first time. I am very excited and at the same time, this will entirely change women’s cricket not only in India but in world cricket too. It’s a great initiative and we are looking forward to that,” said Harmanpreet in a video shared by Mumbai Indians on their Twitter handle

“We all are coming to Mumbai and hope we will get all the support from Mumbai Indians. MI fans have always been very great and like how MI men have been doing, we would like to contribute the same way,” she added.

Harmanpreet Kaur entered into the auction ring with a base price of INR 50 Lakh. As expected, she triggered a bidding war before being bagged by Mumbai Indians.

As many as 409 players were up for grabs at the WPL auction as five teams - Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore and UP Warriorz - formed their squad ahead of the tournament’s first edition.

India opener Smriti Mandhana was the first player to go under the hammer and RCB secured her services for a hefty sum of INR 3.40 Crore.

Other notable Indian picks included, Deepti Sharma (2.60 Crore to UP Warriorz), Jemimah Rodrigues (2.20 Crore to Delhi Capitals), Shafali Verma (2 Crore to Delhi Capitals), Pooja Vastrakar (1.90 Crore to Mumbai Indians) and Richa Ghosh (1.90 Crore to Royal Challengers Bangalore).

Among the overseas players, Australia’s Ashleigh Gardener and England’s Natalie Sciver were the top picks, having been sold for 3.20 Crore to Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians respectively.