Women's cricket: WPL economics and India's next XI

The WPL in numbers

The Women's Premier League launched with five franchises sold for a combined ₹4,670 crore and a five-year media rights deal worth ₹951 crore — about ₹7.09 crore per match, which made it the second most valuable women's sports league in the world on a per-game basis from day one. Those figures matter because they set the salary floor for a generation of players.

Squad rules are tight and worth knowing. Each side carries 15 to 18 players with a maximum of six overseas, of whom five may play in an XI provided one is from an Associate nation. The auction purse has risen steadily and now sits at ₹15 crore per franchise. The minimum player salary is ₹10 lakh for a season of roughly 22 days' work — a life-changing number for domestic cricketers who, a decade ago, were paid a daily allowance and a train fare.

The pathway, step by step

A player's route to the senior India side is now genuinely legible, which was not true five years ago.

1. Under-15 and Under-19 state cricket Zonal one-day and T20 competitions, with the Under-19 T20 Trophy as the main shop window.
2. Senior state cricket The Senior Women's One-Day Trophy and the Senior Women's T20 Trophy, both run on an elite/plate structure across roughly 37 state associations.
3. Challenger and zonal camps Where the NCA coaching staff first sees players in a controlled environment against national-standard bowling.
4. India A tours Increasingly frequent, and now the single strongest predictor of a senior call-up.
5. WPL contract Not a formal selection step, but the exposure to overseas professionals compresses about three years of learning into one season.

Central contracts for the senior women's side run Grade A ₹50 lakh, Grade B ₹30 lakh and Grade C ₹10 lakh annually, with match fees now equalised with the men's side at ₹15 lakh per Test, ₹6 lakh per ODI and ₹3 lakh per T20I. Pay parity on match fees is real; parity on retainers and franchise earnings is not, and it is dishonest to pretend otherwise.

What the next India XI probably needs

Three structural gaps come up in every serious analysis. First, a genuine third seamer — India's attack still leans heavily on spin, which works in Asia and does not work in a World Cup semi-final in New Zealand. Second, a top order that scores at 7.5 or better in the powerplay without losing two wickets; the current pattern of a cautious start followed by an assault after over 12 leaves too much to the finishers. Third, a specialist wicketkeeper who bats in the top six, freeing an extra bowling slot.

The encouraging part is that all three are solvable from within the domestic system. Bengal and Railways have produced left-arm seamers bowling in the high 110s km/h with genuine swing; Maharashtra and Karnataka have a cluster of aggressive top-order players under 22. What is missing is a red-ball domestic competition long enough to develop concentration — currently women's first-class cricket in India is limited to a handful of multi-day matches a season.

Watching and attending

WPL matches are broadcast on the Star Sports network and streamed on JioHotstar, included in the same subscription as the men's competition — so there is no additional cost if you already subscribe. International women's fixtures follow the same rights structure. For a global schedule and rankings, the ICC site remains the cleanest source.

Ticket prices are still deliberately accessible: ₹100–400 for general stands at WPL venues, ₹800–2,000 for premium tiers, with several matches offering free entry for school groups. Attendance at the Brabourne and Chinnaswamy legs has repeatedly passed 25,000, which comfortably exceeds most men's domestic fixtures.

What still needs fixing

Our women's board runs a dedicated domestic scoreboard thread through the season, because for large parts of the calendar it is the only place the results are collated in one readable place. If you want the sport to grow, following it in the quiet months is the most useful thing you can do.