Delhi Capitals started the Women’s Premier League auction slow on Monday, but managed to finish with a solid roster that included big names like Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma and Australian legend Meg Lanning. Although the move largely worked out in their favour, Parth Jindal, chairman and co-owner of Delhi Capitals, said it was challenging for him and his team to prepare for the auction as most of the players were unknown to him. Jemimah eventually became the most expensive player for the Delhi franchise with Rs 2.2 crore while U-19 Women’s World Cup winner Shafali Verma was bought for Rs 2 crore.
“It was very rushed, we didn’t have much time to prepare. Everything is going very fast. The teams are going to assemble very quickly and also the matches are going to start in two weeks. To be honest, it was a new experience for me personally. I am a follower of the women’s game, but apart from the Indian team and a few of the legendary players, I didn’t know many names. Some skills are more competitive than men’s cricket. Overall, it’s been a great learning experience. I felt like a grade 10 student trying to learn the whole year’s syllabus for the past nine days,” Jindal explained.
Meg Lanning’s presence has led most pundits to pinpoint her as the obvious captain option, but Jindal explained that the final decision on the matter will rest with head coach Jonathan Batty and management.
“It is too early for that, but there are captaincy options in these names – one is India U19 captain, the other is legend of the game Meg Lanning, and Jemimah (Rodrigues) is also a great reader of the game. It all depends on the coach in the end and it depends on who else we pick up. (About DC’s strategy),” he said.
Capitals of Delhi: Jemimah Rodrigues, Meg Lanning, Shafali Verma, Radha Yadav, Shikha Pandey, Marizanne Kapp, Titas Sadhu, Alice Capsey, Tara Norris, Laura Harris, Jasia Akther, Minnu Mani, Taniya Bhatia, Jess Jonassen, Sneha Deepthi, Poonam Yadav, Arundhati Reddy, Aparna Mondal.
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