Five star players to go unsold in the initial rounds of Women's T20 League 2023 Auction

The players' auction for the inaugural edition of the Women's T20 League is a monumental step in the history of the women's game in India as it takes a step closer to the materialization of franchise cricket for women in the country. Moreover, the premier T20 League for women is expected to provide a massive opportunity and stage for young women cricketers of India to develop their game further.

The players' auction at the Jio World Centre in Mumbai has seen some eye-raising purchases. However, as is mandatory in such player auctions, it has also seen some star players go unsold.

Here is a list of five star players who surprisingly went unsold in the initial rounds of the auction:

Suzie Bates

Suzie Bates (Source: Twitter)

The first player on this list is an experienced New Zealand campaigner and an all-time women's T20 great, Suzie Bates. The 35-year-old New Zealand allrounder who holds the record for most runs in WT20Is went unsold at the auction in Mumbai. Interestingly, she was picked for the Kia Super League and the Women's Big Bash League but failed to attract interest in the initial rounds of the Indian Women's T20 League.

Bates scored an unbeaten 94 off 61 balls against Pakistan in the 2014 Women's 20-20 World Cup, the highest score by a New Zealander in WT20Is. Later in the same year, she was selected to captain the Rest of the World against MCC Women at Lord's. She also holds the record for most fifties in WT20Is, with 24 half-centuries to her credit.

Hayley Matthews

Hayley Matthews (Source: Twitter)

The 24-year-old explosive batter Hayley Matthews going unsold in the initial rounds of the Women's T20 League Auction is a significant eye-raiser. The explosive West Indian has repeatedly proven she is formidable in the white-ball game. She was recently selected in the inaugural edition of the Women's Big Bash League, where she hit a standout 51-ball 77 against the Melbourne Stars.

The Women's 20-20 World Cup 2016 is where Matthews broke out of her shell, dropping a brilliant performance in the final against the three-time champions Australia. Matthews took on the Australian bowlers, hitting 66 off 45 balls to help her team chase down 149 and win their first international title.

Heather Knight

Heather Knight (Source: Twitter)

English middle-order batter Heather Knight also went unsold in the initial round of the Women's T20 League Auction. She was picked in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) and played her maiden season with Hobart Hurricanes. Notably, the English skipper is still one of the most consistent middle-order batters in the game who's also handy with her off-spin from time to time.

As such, there were high expectations for the English skipper to get picked in the Indian Women's T20 League. Knight, surprisingly, went unsold on Monday despite having five fifties and a highest score of 108* in the shortest format.

Tania Bhatia

Taniya Bhatia (Source: Twitter)

Next up, we have the Indian wicketkeeper batter, Taniya Bhatia, who surprisingly failed to attract interest in the initial rounds of the Women's T20 League Auction. The 25-year-old is a sharp wicketkeeper; she holds the record for the third-highest stumpings in the shortest format of the game, with 45 stumpings to her credit.

She is sixth on the list of total career dismissals and most dismissals in an innings by a wicketkeeper in WT20Is. Her batting average and strike rate may be significant reasons why she failed to attract a bid. Whether she can still get picked during the accelerated rounds is yet to be seen.

Laura Wolvaardt

Laura Wolvaardt (Source: Twitter)

The 23-year-old Laura Wolvaardt is an up-and-coming opening batter in the women's game. She played for Adelaide Strikers in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL), and to predict that she would attract no attention in the initial rounds of the Women's T20 League Auction is a far-fetched thing.

She bats at a decent average of 27.96 with a strike rate of 108.91, deemed average in the game's shortest format. The South African also has four fifties to her name, alongside the highest score of 55 in the shortest format. However, she is an opening batter, and her role is primarily to lay the foundation for the middle-order batter to come and play the big hits, in which she excels.