Meg Lanning is excited to lead <a href="https://www.tapmad.com/blog/upw-secure-shikha-deepti-and-ecclestone-in-wpl-2026-auction/2476-5-0">UP Warriorz</a> in Women&rsquo;s Premier League 2026. Her previous stint with Delhi Capitals was great, as she led the team to runners-up position in each of the first three editions of the WPL. Drawing inspiration from that experience, Lanning is ready to take on a new challenge with UP Warriorz in the WPL 2026, which is scheduled to begin on January 9.

&quot;I certainly learnt a lot in my experience with Delhi. Coming into a new franchise, you don&#39;t really know how things operate or how individuals work. A really important part of the initial week or so is getting used to that. And that&#39;s what I&#39;ve tried to focus on here in my first few days, just trying to get to know everybody.&rdquo; said Meg Lanning while talking to the media.

Currently, Lanning is trying to learn the roles of every player in the team. She is having a hard time remembering the names of some players, but she is confident of building rapport with the team quickly.

&quot;I&#39;m struggling a little bit with all the names. I&#39;m trying to remember all of them, but it&#39;s just trying to understand what people&#39;s roles are, how it all works, and things that I can maybe have some input into and make an impact on, and then some areas where I just need to let people do their job.&rdquo; said Meg Lanning.

&ldquo;I don&#39;t want to be in control over everything [but] try and bring different people&#39;s perspectives and give them confidence to be able to execute their roles.&quot; added Meg Lanning.

Speaking about Deepti Sharma, she said that the growth of the Indian star in international cricket has been heartening to see. She added that Deepti contributes with both bat and ball, which is why her game has improved significantly.

&quot;Deepti has been able to impact the game with both bat and ball and has really improved her game too, which is good to see. She&#39;s always been such a good player but for her to have that drive to keep getting better and want to be the best is very important to someone at this level.&rdquo; said Meg Lanning.

&ldquo;She&#39;s been part of the franchise from the start, so she&#39;s very important on the field and off the field, and I&#39;m looking forward to playing with her again.&rdquo; added Meg Lanning.

She then expressed excitement of working with Sophie Ecclestone. Lanning said that all these players are vastly experienced, so it is a good opportunity to work with them in the upcoming WPL edition.

&ldquo;I have done that in the past and always enjoyed it. I&#39;ll be leaning on her a little bit, and Sophie Ecclestone as well, who has been around a lot, to work out how we go about it. I&#39;ll be leaning on those players to learn as much as I can and understand what the franchise is about, but also trying to move us forward and put my own spin on it.&quot; said Meg Lanning.

<h2>Abhishek Nayar Highlights Meg Lanning&rsquo;s Tactical Brilliance</h2>

The head coach of UP Warriorz, Abhishek Nayar, is also excited to have Meg Lanning in the team. He believes Lanning is the best mind in women&rsquo;s cricket currently, so the team will hopefully take a lot of advantage from her in the upcoming matches.

&quot;For me, she is the best mind out there in women&#39;s cricket. So we are very happy to have her. It&#39;s the first time for me [coaching a women&#39;s cricket team], yes. But I&#39;ve always believed the best teams have the best captains. And this format, especially, is a captain&#39;s format.&rdquo; said Abhishek Nayar.

&ldquo;I wanted someone who could lead this team and having Meg there makes things very easy for me because she&#39;s going to take all the pressure. I&#39;m going to be chilling, having coffee. So no pressure, Meg.&rdquo; added Abhishek Nayar.

The presence of Meg Lanning in the team is undoubtedly a big boost for UP Warriorz. They are hopeful that Lanning will take the team to new heights of success, as she is a vastly experienced cricketer who understands how to lead the team during tough moments.

Meg Lanning is excited to lead the UP Warriorz in the upcoming WPL 2026. She wants to lead the team with her own approach, as the challenge of WPL is quite big.

Meg Lanning Hopes to Shape UP Warriorz’s Success in WPL

Walking into the WPL 2026 auction with the most money to spend, UP Warriorz made some of the biggest headlines of the day. They secured Shikha Pandey for INR 2.40 crore, brought Deepti Sharma back using the RTM (right to match) option, and picked England&rsquo;s world-class spinner Sophie Ecclestone for just INR 85 lakh.

Their new head coach, Abhishek Nayar, taking over from Jon Lewis, said the team had entered the auction with a clear mindset: bring back experience, secure their core Indian players with RTM, and use their purse smartly.

<h2>Why UPW Targeted Shikha Pandey</h2>

Nayar said the team had a specific goal when it came to Shikha Pandey.

&ldquo;[Shikha] came for the trials. She is an experienced player, and we wanted her experience of having played in high-pressure tournaments,&rdquo; he said after the auction.

He noted that Shikha&rsquo;s stats in the WPL speak for themselves. She has been the most successful Indian pace bowler across the last three seasons, performing strongly in both the powerplay and death overs.

Nayar added that while younger bowlers like Kranti Gaud bring energy, the team needed a proven performer for big moments.

<h2>Shikha Pandey&rsquo;s Recent Form in Franchise Cricket</h2>

Even though Pandey hasn&rsquo;t played T20Is for India since February 2023, she has remained active in global leagues, including the WPL, Women&rsquo;s CPL, and WBBL.

Recently, she played all four matches for Trinbago Knight Riders in the WCPL, finishing as their top wicket-taker with five wickets and an economy of 6.73.

Across all WPL seasons, she stands as the leading Indian fast bowler with 30 wickets (economy 6.96). Only Nat Sciver-Brunt has more wickets overall (32).

<h3>Ecclestone&rsquo;s Price Shocked the Coach</h3>

One of the biggest surprises of the auction was Sophie Ecclestone going for just INR 85 lakh.

Nayar openly admitted, &ldquo;I was very surprised; everyone was surprised. I thought she would go for something like 1.5 crore.&rdquo;

Despite being one of the top spinners in world cricket No. 1 in ODIs and No. 4 in T20Is Ecclestone&rsquo;s final price was far lower than expected. For UPW, it became one of the best value buys of the day.

<h2>RTM Strategy: Deepti Sharma Always Part of the Plan</h2>

UPW used the RTM option for Deepti Sharma, who had captained the side earlier in the absence of Alyssa Healy.

Although some were surprised the team released her before the auction, Nayar said it was intentional.

&ldquo;We wanted a big purse in the auction, that&#39;s it,&rdquo; Nayar explained. Deepti&rsquo;s retention price was INR 3.5 crore, and UPW brought her back for INR 3.2 crore, leaving them more money to build depth.

This extra budget allowed them to pick additional players, such as Pratika Rawal, despite her injury.

<h2>RTM Used for Four Players But Not Alyssa Healy</h2>

UPW had four RTM options and used them for Deepti, Ecclestone, Gaud, and Kiran Navgire.

Healy, surprisingly, went unsold despite being the first name in the mega auction.

To fill the opening slot, UPW brought in former Australia captain Meg Lanning, one of the WPL&rsquo;s most consistent run-scorers, and rising Australian talent Phoebe Litchfield.

<h2>Why UPW Wanted Lanning and Litchfield</h2>

Nayar praised both, calling Meg a natural leader and Phoebe a future star.

He said:

&ldquo;Phoebe is also a kind of a leader&hellip; she is a fearless cricketer and can play 360 or 180. We were very excited to get her with that money.&rdquo;

He kept UPW&rsquo;s opening combination a secret, joking that revealing it would help other teams plan.

<h2>UPW&rsquo;s Big Bet on Pratika Rawal</h2>

Another important signing was India&rsquo;s ODI opener Pratika Rawal.

Although she is injured and may not play this season, UPW wanted her long-term potential.

Nayar explained,

&ldquo;When you buy a good player there&#39;s no guarantee that she will be fit&hellip; but we know that if there&#39;s a superstar rising through Indian cricket, it&#39;s Pratika Rawal.&rdquo;

UPW sees her as a player who could shape the franchise&rsquo;s identity in the future and play a big role in upcoming retention cycles.

UP Warriorz pick Shikha Pandey, use RTM for Deepti Sharma, and bag Sophie Ecclestone for INR 85 lakh.

UPW Secure Shikha, Deepti, & Ecclestone in WPL 2026 Auction

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