Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur, star all-rounder Deepti Sharma, and in-form batter Jemimah Rodriguez have all been named in the first group of confirmed players in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) 2024 draft.
For the similar group in the men's Big Bash League (BBL) draft, West Indies pacer Shamar Joseph, New Zealand quick Lockie Ferguson, and Englishmen Jason Roy and James Vince are the highlights.
The draft will take place on September 1. And ahead of it, initial batches of 10 players each have been released.
These are in addition to the 12 men and women players who were signed by the teams pre-draft. Fourteen of the batch of 20 players are also eligible for retention by their respective franchises.
Shamar could be a big breakthrough for the BBL, given his growing popularity since he led the West Indies to a historic Test at the Gabba. However, for him and most other men's players in the BBL, balancing their availabilities for important games amid extensive national calendars would be a big challenge.
Although the WBBL is only growing, with Deepti also set to add more entertainment value after her match-winning heroics in the Women's Hundred final, the BBL is fighting for relevance after crowd-puller Rashid Khan decided to skip the tournament.
Full list of new BBL and WBBL nominations
The teams who can retain the players are in brackets.
BBL nominations: Laurie Evans (Perth Scorchers), Lockie Ferguson, Alex Hales (Sydney Thunder). Shamar Joseph, Shadab Khan, Jamie Overton (Adelaide Strikers), Haris Rauf (Melbourne Stars), Jason Roy, Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Melbourne Stars), James Vince (Sydney Sixers).
WBBL nominations: Suzie Bates (Sydney Sixers), Alice Capsey (Melbourne Stars), Sophie Ecclestone (Sydney Sixers), Shabnim Ismail (Hobart Hurricanes), Harmanpreet Kaur (Melbourne Renegades), Heather Knight (Sydney Thunder), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Laura Wolvaardt (Adelaide Strikers), Danni Wyatt (Perth Scorchers).
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