The youngster is one of the most exciting prospects in Indian women's cricket.
For a talent like Vaishnavi Sharma, not being part of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 would be very surprising. How much ever it would pinch, the left-arm spinner from India will not be a part of the Indian T20 league, which is about to commence from January 9, 2026. Fans have been scratching their heads after none of the franchises picked her in the auction.
Yes, you read that right! The Indian youngster was not picked by any of the franchises in the WPL auction, which was a shocker considering the talent that she brought to the table. The 20-year-old has had quite the journey since her initial days in cricket. Eventually, she came into the spotlight after her hat-trick against Malaysia in the ICC U19 Women’s World Cup in 2025.
In the U19 World Cup, the youngster finished with 17 wickets, which helped the Women in Blue retain their champions crown. This was when Vaishnavi started coming into the limelight as one of the best emerging spinners in Indian women’s cricket.
Vaishnavi Sharma has seen years of struggle behind her before making it big. Her father had put a bond on their home in Gwalior to help Vaishnavi run behind her dream of wearing the blue jersey one day. However, as things worsened during COVID-19, the family had to sell off the house for a sum of INR 25 Lakhs to fund her cricket training, keeping her aspirations alive.
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After all the sacrifices that she has been through, getting her maiden India call-up would surely mean a lot. The young spinner was picked for the ongoing five-match T20I series against Sri Lanka, and has displayed some good bowling performances in the series so far. The spinner from Gwalior possesses four wickets in as many games till now, with an economy of under six.
One of the greatest strengths for the youngster has been her ability to bowl consistent lines and lengths – which put the batters into a fix. Vaishnavi has begged two wickets each in the second and the fourth T20Is against Sri Lanka in the ongoing series.
With India being a spin-heavy nation, the road for the young off-spinner would be pretty straightforward. The 20-year-old has been identified as one of the bright prospects for the future by the Indian management, and the team would like to shape her up for important junctures in the future. However, one thing which will be missing from her arsenal is a WPL 2026 contract.
Vaishnavi Sharma also boasts of a great control over her bowling. She went without conceding a single boundary on debut and gave away just 16 runs from the four overs that she bowled. WPL teams would be on the lookout to include the youngster in their squad for future seasons.
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