Vaishnavi Sharma has joined Mumbai Indians for remainder of the WPL 2026 season. (BCCI)
Left-arm spinner Vaishnavi Sharma was drafted into the Mumbai Indians squad for the rest of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 season as a replacement for wicketkeeper-batter G Kamalini, who was ruled out due to an injury.
A WPL release said that the 20-year-old cricketer, who had gone unsold at the mega auction in November, had been acquired by the franchise for Rs 30 lakh. She made her international debut in the five-match T20I series against Sri Lanka in December, where she claimed five wickets as the hosts won 5-0.
“Mumbai Indians (MI) picked Vaishnavi Sharma as a replacement for G Kamalini for the remainder of the TATA Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026. G Kamalini – the MI wicketkeeper-batter – had played 5 matches in the ongoing edition of the TATA WPL before being ruled out of the season due to an injury.”
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“Vaishnavi Sharma will join MI for INR 30 Lakh. The left-arm spinner, who was a member of India’s triumphant ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup squad of 2025, has played 5 T20Is for India, scalping 5 wickets from the same,” the league said in a statement.
Paltan, let's give a super loud welcome to the newest member of our family! 💙
Vaishnavi Sharma will replace the injured Kamalini for the remainder of the #TATAWPL 2026 season. pic.twitter.com/s9kC77rWkJ
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) January 20, 2026
Prior to her India debut, Vaishnavi had emerged as the leading wicket-taker in the senior women’s T20 tournament, where she claimed 21 wickets in 11 matches at an average of 6.47. Those exploits, however, did not help her find a buyer at the auction, where she was listed for a base price of Rs 10 lakh.
Vaishnavi’s father Dr Narendra Sharma had told The Indian Express that they were not disappointed by the auction snub, adding that they tried to put things into perspective for her daughter, which she understood as well.
“There was no disappointment. We told her this was not a big issue. If a player performs well, she will be selected for India. That is more important. She agreed with us,” he had said. Vaishnavi’s selection for MI comes a few days after she was picked in India’s tour of Australia, for both the T20I and the ODI series.
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