Shamar Joseph and Harmanpreet Kaur. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)
A cast of top-tier global talent is set to land in the BBL|14 and WBBL|10, with the first list of nominations for both Overseas Player Drafts, announced today. The initial list was published on the eve of the league’s tickets-on-sale launch. From tomorrow, fans around the country can secure their seats to every BBL and WBBL game at early bird prices.
The 10 nominations announced today for each of the BBL|14 and WBBL|10 Drafts are below:
BBL|14 Draft first nominations
| Player Name | Country | Retention | Eligible |
| Laurie Evans | England | Perth Scorchers | Yes |
| Lockie Ferguson | New Zealand | – | No |
| Alex Hales | England | Synder Thunder | Yes |
| Shamar Joseph | West Indies | – | No |
| Shadab Khan | Pakistan | – | No |
| Jamie Overton | England | Adelaide Strikers | Yes |
| Haris Rauf | Pakistan | Melbourne Stars | Yes |
| Jason Roy | England | – | No |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | Afghanistan | Melbourne Renegades | Yes |
| James Vince | England | Sydney Sixers | Yes |
WBBL|10 Draft first nominations
| Player Name | Country | Retention | Eligible |
| Suzie Bates | England | Sydney Sixers | Yes |
| Alice Capsey | New Zealand | Melbourne Stars | Yes |
| Sophie Ecclestone | England | Sydney Sixers | Yes |
| Shabnim Ismail | West Indies | Hobart Hurricanes | Yes |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | Pakistan | Melbourne Renegades | Yes |
| Heather Knight | England | Sydney Thunder | Yes |
| Jemimah Rodrigues | Pakistan | – | No |
| Deepti Sharma | England | – | No |
| Laura Wolvaardt | Afghanistan | Adelaide Strikers | Yes |
| Danni Wyatt | England | Perth Scorchers | Yes |
Nominations for the Drafts have now closed, with almost 600 overseas players indicating their availability for the summer of Big Bash. The League will progressively reveal more nominations over the next two weeks via the Big Bash App, social media channels and media releases. A final list including availability indicators to be announced before the Drafts.
A nomination for the Draft indicates a player has not been pre-signed by any club under the new mechanism introduced this year. Despite not being pre-signed, players eligible for retention may still be selected with their previous club’s retention pick in the Drafts. These nominations follow the announcement of 12 pre-signed players to date across the clubs, with the remaining four to be announced soon.
Pre-signed overseas players
| Club | BBL | WBBL |
| Adelaide Strikers | TBC | TBC |
| Brisbane Heats | Colin Munro | Nadine de Klerk |
| Hobart Hurricanes | Chris Jordan | TBC |
| Melbourne Renegades | Tim Seifert | Hayley Matthews |
| Melbourne Stars | Tom Curran | Marizanne Kapp |
| Perth Scorchers | Finn Allen | Sophie Devine |
| Sydney Sixers | TBC | Amelia Kerr |
| Sydney Thunder | Sam Billings | Chamari Athapaththu |
“The quality of overseas players in this summer’s Big Bash Leagues will once again be outstanding and Draft night is shaping up as a must-watch. The Drafts themselves on September 1 will be broadcast on more platforms than ever before thanks to the commitment of our broadcasters Seven and Foxtel,” said Alistair Dobson, Cricket Australia’s General Manager, Big Bash Leagues.
“In addition to the first nominations announced today, a selection of top T20 names have already committed to clubs as pre-signed players in recent weeks. We look forward to more nominations and pre-signed players being revealed in coming weeks, as players once again show that the WBBL and BBL are destinations of choice for them,” Dobson concluded.
How to watch the Drafts?
The Drafts will be broadcast live across The Seven Network, 7plus, FOX SPORTS and Kayo Sports on September 1. The WBBL 10 Draft will begin at 3:00 pm AEST, with the BBL 14 Draft to follow immediately after.
How do the Drafts work?
Both the BBL|14 and WBBL|10 Drafts consist of four rounds, with all clubs receiving one pick in each round. Clubs can select a player who has made themselves available to be drafted in one of four overseas player salary bands: Platinum (Round 1 or 2), Gold (Round 2 or 3), Silver (Round 3 or 4) or Bronze (Round 4 only). Clubs must select a minimum of two players via the Draft and can pass in a maximum of two rounds.
Players contracted before the Draft under the new pre-signing mechanism will not appear on the nominations list. Pre-signed players must be selected by their club during the Draft with a pick that matches the salary band of their playing contract. The order of selections for both Drafts was confirmed via the Draft Lotteries, with the third round to be conducted in reverse order.
The Draft orders are below. Note, in the BBL|14 Draft, Adelaide Strikers and Sydney Thunder executed a pick swap in Round 2 as part of Wes Agar’s trade to the Thunder.
BBL|14 Draft Order
Melbourne Stars
Melbourne Renegades
Sydney Thunder
Hobart Hurricanes
Adelaide Strikers
Brisbane Heat
Perth Scorchers
Sydney Sixers
WBBL|10 Draft Order
Hobart Hurricanes
Sydney Sixers
Melbourne Renegades
Melbourne Stars
Sydney Thunder
Adelaide Strikers
Brisbane Heat
Perth Scorchers
Where to buy WBBL tickets?
Fans are encouraged to buy early and save, with early bird prices available until November 14 for BBL tickets and October 10 for WBBL tickets.
PlayCricket Week
Cricket Australia is calling on all young cricketers to register for the summer ahead with the launch of Play Cricket Week today. Running from August 19-25, Play Cricket Week encourages young players across the country with all levels of experience and ability to sign up to play for the 24/25 cricket season.