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Cricket

‘Itne me to do Babar Azam aa jaega!’ - Fans go crazy as Bangalore franchise buy Smriti Mandhana for a huge amount

Here is how fans have reacted to the amount that the Bangalore franchise paid for Smriti Mandhana for the upcoming tournament

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Jennifer
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Smriti Mandhana

Smriti Mandhana (Image Source: Twitter)

On 13 February 2023, the auction of the Women’s T20 League took place at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai. Over 400 players participated in the auction process. However, all eyes were on some star players like Sophie Devine, Smriti Mandhana, and others. In the first marquee set only, players like Sophie Devine, Sophie Ecclestone, Ashleigh Gardner, Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Hayley Matthews, and Ellyse Perry were on the list. 

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However, the first name that came up was team India’s, Smriti Mandhana. So, fans were hoping to see her as one of the most expensive players at the historic auction. Both Bangalore and Mumbai franchises began a bidding war for the star opener.

“We're hopeful she will be available from the second game onwards." - Hrishikesh Kantikar on Smriti Mandhana  

There were reports that the Bangalore franchise will look for Smriti Mandhana for the inaugural season of the Women’s T20 League. However, they did not disappoint their fans as they bought Smriti Mandhana for a whopping amount of INR 3.4 Crores. This star batter has been a prolific opener in the world of Women’s Cricket in the last several years. She is also the vice-captain of the Indian women's cricket team. For India, she has played 112 T20Is where Mandhana has scored 2651 runs in 108 innings. However, she is currently busy playing in the ongoing 20-20 World Cup in South Africa for team India.

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But, Smriti Mandhana missed the playing XI of the India Women’s team against Pakistan due to a finger injury. However, she is expected to make a comeback against West Indies. In the pre-match press conference, Indian batting coach Hrishikesh Kantikar said: "Smriti has a finger injury and is still recovering, so she won't play most-likely. It's not a fracture and we're hopeful she will be available from the second game onwards." So, now fans have gone crazy after the southpaw batter bagged a whopping amount for the inaugural season of the Women’s T20 League for the Bangalore franchise.

Here is how fans have reacted to the price of Smriti Mandhana at the auction:

Cricket News Twitter Reactions Women's T20 League 2023