England Cricketers Knight, Bell, and Wong Released Ahead of Women’s Premier League 2025 Season

England captain Heather Knight, along with seamers Lauren Bell and Issy Wong, have been released by their Women’s Premier League (WPL) franchises in advance of the 2025 season. Knight, 33, and Bell, 23, both withdrew from the 2024 tournament to prioritize England’s tour of New Zealand. Knight, who accumulated 135 runs in 2023, was released by the defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Bell has departed from UP Warriorz, a team coached by England head coach Jon Lewis. Wong, 22, had a significant impact in 2023, securing 15 wickets in 10 matches as Mumbai Indians claimed the title, but her performance in 2024 saw her take only three wickets in two matches. Sophie Ecclestone, the world’s top-ranked T20 bowler, has been retained by UP Warriorz, and Nat Sciver-Brunt will continue with Mumbai Indians. All-rounder Alice Capsey was also retained by Delhi Capitals, while Kate Cross will remain with Royal Challengers Bengaluru. It was previously announced that opener Danni Wyatt-Hodge had transferred to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) from UP Warriorz for 30 lakh rupees (£27,400). Scotland’s Kathryn Bryce has also been released by Gujarat Titans. Overall, 71 players, comprising 25 overseas players, have been retained across the franchises. Consequently, 19 slots, including five for overseas players, are available to be filled during the upcoming auction. The full lists of retained and released players for each franchise are as follows: Delhi Capitals Retained: Alice Capsey, Annabel Sutherland, Arundhati Reddy, Jemimah Rodrigues, Jess Jonassen, Marizanne Kapp, Meg Lanning, Minnu Mani, Radha Yadav, Shafali Verma, Shikha Pandey, Sneha Deepthi, Taniyaa Bhatia and Titas Sadhu. Released: Aparna Mondal, Ashwani Kumari, Laura Harris and Poonam Yadav. Gujarat Giants Retained: Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney, Bharti Fulmali, Dayalan Hemalatha, Harleen Deol, Kashvee Gautam, Laura Wolvaardt, Mannat Kashyap, Meghna Singh, Phoebe Litchfield, Priya Mishra, Sayali Satghare, Shabnam Shakil and Tanuja Kanwer. Released: Kathryn Bryce, Lauren Cheatle, Lea Tahuhu, Sneh Rana, Tarannum Pathan, Trisha Poojitha and Veda Krishnamurthy. Mumbai Indians Retained: Amandeep Kaur, Amanjot Kaur, Amelia Kerr, Chloe Tryon, Harmanpreet Kaur, Hayley Matthews, Jintimani Kalita, Keerthana Balakrishnan, Natalie Sciver-Brunt, Pooja Vastrakar, S. Sajana, Saika Ishaque, Shabnim Ismail and Yastika Bhatia. Released: Fatima Jaffer, Humairaa Kaazi, Issy Wong and Priyanka Bala Royal Challengers Bengaluru Retained: Asha Shobana, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Ekta Bisht, Ellyse Perry, Georgia Wareham, Kanika Ahuja, Kate Cross, Renuka Singh, Richa Ghosh, S. Meghana, Shreyanka Patil, Smriti Mandhana, Sophie Devine and Sophie Molineux. Released: Disha Kasat, Indrani Roy, Shraddha Pokarkar, Shubha Satheesh and Simran Bahadur. UP Warriorz Retained: Alyssa Healy, Anjali Sarvani, Chamari Athapaththu, Deepti Sharma, Gouher Sultana, Grace Harris, Kiran Navgire, Poonam Khemnar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Saima Thakor, Shweta Sehrawat, Sophie Ecclestone, Tahlia McGrath, Uma Chetry and Vrinda Dinesh. Released: Laxmi Yadav, Parshavi Chopra, S. Yashasri and Lauren Bell.