3 min read
The third edition of the Women’s Premier League is slated to begin on the 14th of February, with the defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru taking on the Gujarat Giants in Vadodara on opening day. This season will see teams shuttling between four cities, namely Vadodara, Lucknow, Bengaluru, and Mumbai.
Over the first two years, plenty of established players have augmented their reputations by playing in this competition, while the tournament has helped unearth some unheralded players into stardom. With the third season not so far away, here’s a look at five players to watch out for this season in the Women’s Premier League.
Women’s Premier League: Top five players to watch out for
1. Ashleigh Gardner
The Australian all-rounder has been named as the captain for the Gujarat Giants this season, replacing her national teammate Beth Mooney. She has been a crucial player for the Giants in the first two seasons, despite the team not necessarily doing very well.
Gardner was the Player of the Tournament in the 2023 T20 World Cup and played a key role in the 2022 Commonwealth Games triumph as well. She has scored 324 runs in 16 WPL matches so far, and picked up 17 wickets. Coming off a solid Women’s Ashes, Gardner would be hoping to continue her fine form.
2. Alana King
The talismanic leg spinner from Australia was the Player of the Series for the 2025 Women’s Ashes. She picked up 23 wickets in the Women’s Ashes and was, at times, unplayable with his loopy leg breaks. Alana King has a decorated trophy cabinet with Australia, winning the 2022 Women’s World Cup, the 2023 T20 World Cup, and the 2022 Commonwealth Games games.
She was picked on base price by the UP Warriorz and will be making her WPL debut this season. Expect Alana King to be one of the steals of the season given that she comes into the tournament off the back of a solid Women’s Ashes.
3. Hayley Matthews
Hayley Matthews has been West Indies’ talismanic cricketer over the past half decade or so, and has performed superbly in franchise cricket as well. A high-demand player - Matthews bats aggressively in the top order and can contribute with her canny off-breaks as well.
She was the Player of the Tournament in the inaugural WPL when Mumbai Indians won the trophy. Matthews has scored 451 runs in the Women’s Premier League across two seasons and picked up 23 wickets as well.
4. Smriti Mandhana
The captain of the defending champion, Smriti Mandhana has had a good last 12 months in limited-overs cricket and would be rearing to perform once again in the WPL. Mandhana played 13 ODIs in 2024 and scored a whopping 747 runs at an average of 57.46.
She amassed four centuries and three fifties, making the most of the home tours against New Zealand and Ireland. Mandhana scored 300 runs in 10 matches in the WPL season and would be hoping to augment that tally.
5. Marizanne Kapp
South Africa’s star all-rounder, Marizanne Kapp has been amongst the top performers for the Delhi Capitals in the WPL across two seasons. She set the stage on fire in the inaugural season, while her form slightly dipped in the second season.
Nevertheless, her stats make for good reading. In 16 matches across two seasons, Kapp has scored 256 runs at an average of 32. She has been stellar with the ball as well, picking up 20 wickets at a strike rate of 19.20 with an economy rate under six.