Always the bridesmaid, never the bride – an adage that very well sits for the Delhi Capitals (DC) Women. In all three completed Women’s Premier League (WPL) seasons, DC have finished at the top of the table, playing across all the finals. Yet, the elusive title remains a distant dream. While the Mumbai Indians (MI) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have won WPL titles, DC are trophyless.
WPL 2025 Retentions
Yet, they have a strong core of players and it will be extremely tough ahead of the WPL 2026 mega auction. In fact, among all the five WPL teams, DC will have the most selection headaches. The kind of talent that they possess is a luxury but that is what a mega auction is all about. A chance for every team to rejig the squad. As for Delhi Capitals, they would love to retain the major core.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has set November 5 as the deadline for the WPL franchise to name their retentions. Of course, it isn’t mandatory to retain even one player since the Right to Match (RTM) card has been introduced. However, retaining all 5 players would cost a franchise at least INR 9.25 crore, which is more than 60% of the entire purse (15). A maximum of 3 capped Indian players, 2 overseas players, and 2 uncapped Indian players can be retained.
Predicted DC Women retention list for WPL 2026 mega auction
The big dilemma for DC will certainly be on some older yet influential players. We are talking about their captain, Meg Lanning, who has been a force to be reckoned with. However, with age (33) not on her side, DC might as well look for the future in this WPL cycle. A mega auction is where teams look for future as well and DC have other options.
Jemimah Rodrigues is now one of the faces of the Indian women’s cricket after her once-in-a-lifetime innings against Australia at the ODI World Cup 2025. Her unbeaten 127* was one of the major reasons why India lifted the elusive trophy. Now, DC would want to make her the face of the franchise too, and she might end up as the top retention.
Similarly, Shafali Verma is a talent that you don’t want to miss out on. She has done extremely well for Delhi, having scored 865 runs at an outstanding strike rate of 162.59 across three seasons. The Player of the Match in the ICC Women’s World Cup final, the 21-year-old needs to be retained, as there’s no one like her. Yes, she can be inconsistent sometimes but the upside is massive.
Retention 1 (INR 3.50 crore): Jemimah Rodrigues
Retention 2 (INR 2.50 crore): Shafali Verma
Retention 1 (INR 1.75 crore): 
Marizanne Kapp
Retention 4 (INR 1.00 crore): Annabel Sutherland
Retention 5 (INR 50.00 lakh): Niki Prasad
RTM: 0
Purse Left: INR 5.75 crore
The post Predicted Delhi Capitals W retention list for WPL 2026: Questions on Lanning & Kapp; Jemimah certain appeared first on Inside Sport India.