Royal Challengers Bengaluru have signed Australian left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen for ₹40 lakh at the WPL 2027 auction in Kochi. She went at her base price, with no rival bid on record.
Jonassen was RCB’s first buy of the night. They came in with ₹1.15 crore and five open slots after their WPL 2027 retentions.
“Jess Jonassen goes to @RCBTweets for INR 40 lakh 🙌”
WPL official X account, auction night, 28 October 2026
JESS JONASSEN TO RCB! 🔥
The defending WPL champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, have secured the services of experienced Australian all-rounder Jess Jonassen for ₹40 lakh ahead of WPL 2027! 💰🏏
#Cricket #WPL #RCB https://t.co/M05tow1eaa
— Sportskeeda (@Sportskeeda) October 28, 2026
The price shows that a bowler with 33 WPL wickets was available cheaply. It does not show which shoulder the surgeon operated on, or why that matters more for a left-arm spinner than any number on her record.
Jonassen pulled out of the 2026 auction hours before it began because of a right shoulder problem she had been managing for a long time. She had surgery in November 2025 and missed the rest of that WBBL season.
She returned for Queensland against New South Wales in February 2026. A month later she gave up the Brisbane Heat and Queensland captaincy, saying she could no longer give the role everything.
Insider Read
For a left-arm spinner, the right shoulder leads the action: it points at the target, then pulls down hard to drag the bowling arm over the top. That pull is where dip and drift come from. Weaken it and the ball comes out flatter, and batters can pick the length.
That is why teams held back. Rehab rebuilds strength, but the timing of the front arm only returns through match overs, and nets cannot prove it. At ₹40 lakh, RCB lose little if they are wrong and gain a bowler averaging 20.75 in this league if they are right.
How Jonassen Fits RCB’s Title Defence
Earlier in the night RCB lost a bidding battle for their former spinner Sophie Molineux to UP Warriorz, who paid ₹1.1 crore. UPW also signed Grace Harris, released by RCB, for ₹30 lakh.
Jonassen fills the gap left by another release. Before the auction RCB let go England left-arm spinner Linsey Smith, so this is a like-for-like replacement.
| Jonassen in the WPL | |
|---|---|
| Team | Delhi Capitals, 2023 to 2025 |
| Matches | 24 |
| Wickets | 33 at 20.75 |
| Runs | 295 at 24.58, two fifties |
| Against RCB | 61* off 38 balls, 1 March 2025 |
RCB know what she can do with the bat. In that 2025 game she batted at No. 3 and shared an unbeaten 146 stand with Shafali Verma as Delhi won by nine wickets.
Coach Malolan Rangarajan set out the aim a month before the auction.
“The intent with which we’re going to approach this auction is to improve our team.”
Malolan Rangarajan, RCB website, 28 September 2026
After this signing RCB have ₹75 lakh and one overseas slot left. That money has to cover the Indian middle-order batter they came looking for.
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