The second edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL) is on the heels of its commencement and there are already a few changes from its inaugural edition. The teams and their captains are the same but not the personnel. Post the auction, there were some very obvious changes in the squads of all the five franchises but the tweaks were not limited to just the players. The venues have changed, a couple of franchises have named new coaches and even the players too, three of them.
As WPL 2024 kicks off on February 23 at Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium with the defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on the Delhi Capitals in a repeat of last year's final, here's a look at all the changes before the new season-
Player replacements
Chamari Athapaththu in place of Lauren Bell (UP Warriorz) - The WBBL Player of the Tournament and one of the best women cricketers in modern era, Sri Lanka's Chamari Athapaththu finally got her maiden WPL call-up with the Warriorz.
Nadine de Klerk in place of Heather Knight (RCB) - England captain Heather Knight like Bell decided to skip WPL to be available for the New Zealand T20 series from the start. This has provided the South African all-rounder de Klerk a golden opportunity to play in the WPL.
Lea Tahuhu in place of Lauren Cheatle (GG) - New Zealand pacer Lea Tahuhu like Athapaththu got a well-deserved call-up in the WPL with Australian seamer Cheatle set to be out of action for a few months with skin cancer removal.
Venues
The inaugural edition of the Women's Premier League took place entirely in the city of Mumbai at two venues - Braborne Stadium (CCI) and DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The tournament, however, now has moved out of India's financial capital to the home venues of the remaining two teams with IPL franchises, Delhi (Arun Jaitley Stadium) and Bengaluru (M Chinnaswamy Stadium).
The tournament will begin in Bengaluru with the first 11 games at RCB's home ground, followed by the remaining 11 games at Delhi Capitals' fortress including the eliminator and the final.
New coaches
Luke Williams (RCB) - Luke Williams, who has been on a tremendous run in franchise cricket having led the Adelaide Strikers to the title twice in a row in the WBBL, replaced Ben Sawyer, the White Ferns' head coach. Under Sawyer, RCB finished fourth in a five-team competition and will be hoping for better results under Williams.
Michael Klinger (GG) - Michael Klinger, the former Melbourne Renegades men's head coach and the current assistant coach of Sydney Thunder women, has filled in for Rachael Haynes at Gujarat Giants with the former Australian cricketer taking up the position of the Sydney Sixers club head last year. Klinger has had an illustrious career as a player and now in the backroom staff and last year's wooden spoon holders will hope for better results in 2024 under him.
