T20 Mumbai Women’s League | ‘I’ll try my best to do justice to my value’: Ira Jadhav

Ira Jadhav

Mumbai's teenaged batting sensation Ira Jadhav, 16, emerged as the most expensive player during the inaugural T20 Mumbai Women's League auction. Opener Jadhav was bought by Aakash Tigers for Rs 10 lakh during the auction at a city hotel on Saturday.

Jadhav, who had a base price of Rs 1 lakh in the U-19 batters' category, said that she never thought about money. "I never expected to get such a big amount. It was a surprise for me. Actually, I was not thinking about money. I just wanted to play in the T20 Mumbai League, as it will give me good exposure," Jadhav told

Sunday mid-day over the phone from Bengaluru on Saturday, when asked whether she expected the highest bid. Jadhav, who has represented Mumbai's senior women's team and has been a stand-by for the Indian women's U-19 team, was busy training with India U-19 players at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru on the auction day.

"We were practising here in Bengaluru, so I was not following the auction. But after our practice, I asked my mother, so she told me about it. It feels good to emerge as the costliest player. I will try to give my best performance and give justice to my value. My mother and dad will decide what to do with this amount. My next target is to represent the country in the U-19 World Cup," said Jadhav.

Meanwhile, Aakash Tigers co-owner Aditi Jajodia said they splurged on Jadhav as she is the most exciting talent. "We picked Ira purely on merit. At just 16, she's already one of the most exciting young batters in Mumbai right now. The kind of talent she has at such a young age is rare, and we genuinely believe she's going to be a big name in the future. That's why we were willing to go all out and bid R10 lakhs for her - she's absolutely worth that investment," Jajodia told Sunday mid-day.

Last year, when Jadhav was playing for the Mumbai U-19 team, she smashed a 157-ball 346 not out against Meghalaya in the Women's one-day tournament at Alur, Karnataka.

Top 3 buys

>> Ira Jadhav (Aakash Tigers): Rs 10 lakh
>> Simran Shaikh (SoBo Mumbai Falcons): Rs 7 lakh
>> Vrushali Bhagat (Thane Skyrisers): Rs 6 lakh