The first ever women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) draft has been revealed and some of the biggest superstars of international cricket are set to join the premium Australian women’s cricket league WBBL.
Amelia Kerr, Deepti Sharma, and Deandra Dottin stand out as prominent figures among the extensive list of over 100 nominees unveiled for the inaugural Weber WBBL player draft set for Sunday.
The WBBL|09 Draft has attracted a total of 116 players representing 19 different countries. Simultaneously, the BBL|13 Draft has garnered the interest of 376 players from 29 nations.
Direct Signing in WBBL
Suzie Bates has have expressed their availability for WBBL|09. Along with her, a few players have chosen to utilize a distinct mechanism, exclusive to the women’s competition, which enables them to sidestep the draft and directly sign with a WBBL club later on.
This approach, termed “Direct Nominations,” eliminates the uncertainty of the draft for the players. However, it comes with a caveat – players who opt for this route can only receive a maximum of 95% of the silver tier salary. This means their earnings will be capped at $61,750 for WBBL|09.
Players selected in the first round of the draft at the platinum level will earn $110,000 , while those at the gold tier will receive $90,000.
Alongside Bates, the group of players adopting this strategy comprises the England trio of Tammy Beaumont, Sophia Dunkley, and Amy Jones, as well as the South African duo Mignon du Preez and Lizelle Lee. Beamont, who previously had affiliations with the Thunder, initially enrolled for the draft but subsequently switched to the direct nomination mechanism.
Supporters of the Brisbane Heat team will be content to see the participation of Kerr, who has been an influential presence on the field for the club since 2019 and is up for retention. Meanwhile, the prominent Indian allrounder Sharma is ineligible for retention, making her eligible for drafting by any of the eight clubs.
The introduction of the draft has provided an opportunity for players from various parts of the world to present themselves for consideration. Players such as Orla Prendergast from Ireland, Tara Norris from the USA, and Jahanara Alam from Bangladesh are eager to make their debut in the competition.
Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) Draft Nominations
Georgia Adams (England)
Jahanara Alam (Bangladesh)
Emily Arlott (England)
Aiman Anwar (Pakistan)
Hollie Armitage (England)
Kaia Arua (Papua New Guinea)
Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka)
Hannah Baker (England)
Suzie Bates (New Zealand)
Tammy Beaumont (England)
Lauren Bell (England)
Bernadine Bezuidenhout (New Zealand)
Yastika Bhatia (India)
Harmanpreet Kaur (India)
Anneke Bosche (South Africa)
Maia Bouchier (England)
Tazmin Brits (South Africa)
Alice Capsey (England)
Eden Carson (New Zealand)
Kary Chan (Hong Kong)
Shamilia Connell (West Indies)
Kate Cross (England)
Nida Dar (Pakistan)
Naomi Dattani (England)
Freya Davies (England)
Nadine de Klerk (South Africa)
Laura Delany (Ireland)
Harleen Deol (India)
Annerie Dercksen (South Africa)
Sophie Devine (New Zealand)
Deandra Dottin (West Indies)
Mignon du Preez (South Africa)
Sophia Dunkley (England)
Kate Ebrahim (New Zealand)
Afy Fletcher (West Indies)
Hurley Gala (India)
Katie George (England)
Richa Ghosh (India)
Dani Gibson (England)
Sarah Glenn (England)
Kirstie Gordon (England)
Maddy Green (New Zealand)
Bess Heath (England)
Chinelle Henry (West Indies)
Shabnim Ismail (South Africa)
Sinalo Jafta (South Africa)
Iram Javed (Pakistan)
Hayley Jensen (New Zealand)
Xara Jetly (New Zealand)
Sibona Jimmy (Papua New Guinea)
Fran Jonas (New Zealand)
Amy Jones (England)
Evelyn Jones (England)
Qiana Joseph (West Indies)
Sterre Kallis (Netherlands)
Marizanne Kapp (South Africa)
Mannat Kashyap (India)
Leigh Kasperek (New Zealand)
Amanjot Kaur (India)
Marie Kelly (England)
Amelia Kerr (New Zealand)
Jessica Kerr (New Zealand)
Michaela Kirk (South Africa)
Masbata Klaas (South Africa)
Heather Knight (England)
Veda Krishnamurthy (India)
Emma Lamb (England)
Lizelle Lee (South Africa)
Katie Levick (England)
Gaby Lewis (Ireland)
Sune Luus (South Africa)
Rosemary Mair (New Zealand)
Abtaha Maqsood (Scotland)
Eliz-Mari Marx (South Africa)
Hayley Matthews (West Indies)
Nonkululeko Mlaba (South Africa)
Anisa Mohammed (West Indies)
Kalea Moore (England)
Fi Morris (England)
Mary-Anne Musonda (Zimbabwe)
Kelis Ndhlovu (Zimbabwe)
Tara Norris (USA)
Esha Oza (UAE)
Shikha Pandey (India)
Nensi Patel (New Zealand)
Shreyanka Patil (India)
Molly Penfold (New Zealand)
Orla Prendergast (Ireland)
Karishma Ramharack (West Indies)
Sneh Rana (India)
Jemimah Rodrigues (India)
Tanya Ruma (Papua New Guinea)
Meghana Sabbineni (India)
Fatima Sana (Pakistan)
Theertha Satish (UAE)
Grace Scrivens (England)
Robyn Searle (South Africa)
Shakera Selman (West Indies)
Syeda Aroob Shah (Pakistan)
Deepti Sharma (India)
Meghna Singh (India)
Seren Smale (England)
Sophia Smale (England)
Bryony Smith (England)
Linsey Smith (England)
Lea Tahuhu (New Zealand)
Stafanie Taylor (West Indies)
Renuka Thakur (India)
Eleanor Threlkeld (England)
Isabel Toua (Papua New Guinea)
Chloe Tryon (South Africa)
Faye Tunnicliffe (South Africa)
Dane van Niekerk (South Africa)
Pooja Vastrakar (India)
Mady Villiers (England)
Jess Watkin (New Zealand)
Lauren Winfield-Hill (England)
Jane Winster (South Africa)
Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa)
Issy Wong (England)
Danni Wyatt (England)
Radha Yadav (India)
