WPL 2024 Auction: Phoebe Litchfield becomes first player sold, Gujarat Giants buy her for Rs 1 crore
Phoebe Litchfield became the first player to be sold in the WPL Auction as Gujarat Giants bought the Australian star for one crore.
Litchfield plies her trade for Sydney Thunder in the Women’s Big Bash League and holds the record for the joint-fastest fifty in WT20Is off 18 balls along with Sophie Devine.
Litchfield’s potential was recognised early on when she caught public attention during a net session with New South Wales that went viral in 2019. At just 16 years old, she debuted for Sydney Thunder and quickly made history by becoming the youngest player to score a WBBL half-century in her second match. Her talent was further highlighted when she hit her first WNCL century for NSW in October 2022 and had her best season to date with Sydney Thunder.
Her dedication to cricket became even more evident after she graduated from high school and committed to the sport full-time in 2022. This commitment paid off when she was called into her first Australia T20I squad for the December 2022 tour of India, where she made her debut in the second match of the series. She was then promoted to opener in place of an injured Alyssa Healy for the final game of the series. Following her T20I debut, Litchfield received her first ODI call-up for the 2023 home series against Pakistan.
In her ODI debut on January 16, 2023, Litchfield scored an unbeaten 78, including the winning runs, and shared a 137-run stand with captain Meg Lanning. This performance made her the youngest Australian to score an ODI fifty.
Litchfield was the first person out of the bag and Gujarat Giants went in straightaway with the bid. UP Warriorz joined in soon and the price went from 30 to 90 Lakhs in quick time. Warriorz took some time to discuss and went to 95 before the Giants made it one crore.
Warriorz would then back off and GG got their player.