• Home
  • Cricket News
  • Wpl 2026 Auction Loses A Major Candidate As Australian Ace Withdraws Due To Injury

WPL 2026 auction loses a major candidate as Australian ace withdraws due to injury

Rajgeeta Yadav

Jess Jonassen pulls out of WPL auction [Source: AFP]Jess Jonassen pulls out of WPL auction [Source: AFP]

Australia star all-rounder Jess Jonassen has withdrawn from the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 auction because of a long-standing shoulder injury. Her decision was shared with all teams during a pre-auction meeting earlier this week.

Jonassen, who is 33, has been dealing with this shoulder problem for quite some time. Although she has continued to play through the pain in recent seasons, she has now decided to step back and focus on recovery, making her unavailable for the upcoming auction and season, as revealed by ESPN.

Jess Jonassen's WPL career so far

Notably, Jonassen has been an important part of the Delhi Capitals since they bought her for her base price of ₹50 lakh in the 2023 WPL auction. Over her three seasons with the team, she played 24 matches, scored 295 runs, and picked up 33 wickets. She also earned five Player of the Match awards, second only to Harmanpreet Kaur in the tournament’s history.

The 33-year-old’s withdrawal comes despite having an excellent year overall. She was named Player of the Tournament in the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) after taking 17 wickets and scoring crucial runs at an impressive average of 43.60.

Jonnassen finished as the third-highest wicket-taker in the 2025 WPL and delivered a standout performance in The Hundred with bowling figures of 4 for 10. She was also part of the Delhi Capitals squad that reached the WPL final in all three previous seasons.

During the same pre-auction update, teams were informed that three Indian players, batter Pratika Rawal, wicketkeeper-batter Yastika Bhatia, and pacer VJ Joshitha, are currently injured. While they will still appear in the auction pool, they cannot be counted as part of a team’s required 15-player squad, and teams will not be allowed replacements if they choose to pick them.

Meanwhile, India pacer Pooja Vastrakar is also not fully fit but remains eligible for the auction. Another Indian player, Kashvee Gautam, has been declared fit to play.

The WPL 2026 auction will take place on Thursday in New Delhi, where teams can sign players to fill up to 73 open slots for the new season