Big Bash Drafts

The KFC BBL|15 and Weber WBBL|11 overseas player drafts are now complete, having taken place on June 19.

Draft results

BBL|15 Draft

Pakistan's Shaheen Shah Afridi was taken by Brisbane Heat with the first pick in the draft. See how each pick fell below or re-live the action in our BBL draft blog.

WBBL|11 Draft

The Sydney Sixers had the fortune of picking first and they selected England's Sophia Dunkley. Here is how the event played out and here is the WBBL draft blog.

Draft Orders

Brisbane Heat claimed the BBL|15 Draft's No.1 pick after being drawn first in a weighted lottery that determined the order.

Under the Big Bash draft system, the bottom four teams from BBL|14 were the only clubs eligible to receive picks 1-4, with the last placed team (Adelaide Strikers) having the best chance (40 per cent) of doing so, while the fifth placed team (Perth Scorchers) had the smallest odds (10 per cent).

The Heat finished seventh in BBL|14 and therefore had a 30 per cent chance of being drawn first, while the Strikers received the No.2 pick after being drawn second, followed by the Renegades (pick 3) and Scorchers (pick 4).

The four finalists from last season were in the running for picks 5-8 – decided by a second weighted lottery – with reigning champions Hobart Hurricanes the big winners after overcoming a one in 10 chance to land the fifth selection.

Sydney Sixers, who were eliminated from the BBL|14 finals in straight sets, claimed the sixth pick, followed by Melbourne Stars (pick 7) and last season's runners-up, Sydney Thunder (pick 8).

However, depending on pick trades (click here for more information on the draft rules), the order could change prior to the draft on June 19.

The first round of the Big Bash drafts follows a linear format before switching to the 'snake' format from the start of the second round, with round three conducted in reverse order, meaning the Thunder have the last pick in round two (No.16) but will then select first in round three (No.17).

In the WBBL|11 Draft lottery, it was the Sixers who overcame long odds to secure the No.1 pick for the first time.

The Sixers, who had a 20 per cent chance of receiving pick one after finishing sixth last season, will get first dibs on the best overseas talent for WBBL|11 after being drawn first in the weighted lottery, with the Strikers getting pick two.

The Stars received pick three despite their last placed finish in WBBL|11 giving them a 40 per cent chance of landing No.1 pick, while the Scorchers have the fourth pick.

The WBBL weighted lottery followed the same rules as the men's competition, with picks 1-4 were drawn from teams that did not participate in the WBBL|10 finals, while the four finalists from last season were in the running for picks 5-8.

The Hurricanes will have the fifth pick in the WBBL|11 Draft – the same pick as their men's side in this year's draft – with the Thunder the sixth pick, followed by reigning champions Melbourne Renegades (pick 7) and runners-up Brisbane Heat (pick 8).

Like the men's draft, the first round of the women's draft will also be linear before changing to the 'snake' format from the start of the second round, meaning round three is conducted in reverse order with the Heat holding the last pick in round two (No.16) and the first in round three (No.17).

Direct overseas player signings

Only overseas players are eligible to nominate and be picked in the Big Bash drafts, but clubs are also able to directly sign one overseas men's and women's player each season for up to a maximum of three years.

These players are required to be available for the entire season including finals.

The multi-year contracting mechanism for overseas players was introduced ahead of the 2024 drafts to help retain and attract new international players amid an increasingly competitive global T20 landscape.

The clubs below have locked in their direct signing for next season:

Club	BBL\|15
Adelaide Strikers	Jamie Overton (England)
Brisbane Heat	Colin Munro (New Zealand)
Hobart Hurricanes	Chris Jordan (England)
Melbourne Renegades	Tim Seifert (New Zealand)
Melbourne Stars	Tom Curran (England)
Perth Scorchers	Finn Allen (New Zealand)
Sydney Sixers	Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Sydney Thunder	Sam Billings (England, contracted until BBL\|16)

Club	WBBL\|11
Adelaide Strikers	Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa, contracted until WBBL\|12)
Brisbane Heat	Nadine de Klerk (South Africa)
Hobart Hurricanes	Nat Sciver-Brunt (England)
Melbourne Renegades	N/A
Melbourne Stars	Marizanne Kapp (South Africa, contracted until WBBL\|12)
Perth Scorchers	Sophie Devine (New Zealand)
Sydney Sixers	Amelia Kerr (New Zealand, contracted until WBBL\|12)
Sydney Thunder	Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka, contracted until WBBL\|12)

Clubs can sign overseas players prior to the drafts on one-, two- or three-year deals at one of the existing draft salary bands (Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze – more on them here) or at a negotiated price above the Platinum rate, which is $420,000 per season for men's players in BBL|15 or $110,000 for women in WBBL|11.

Pre-signed players will not enter the draft pool, but clubs must allocate their pre-signed player to a pick during the draft based on the salary band they fit into. For example, if an overseas player is signed to a multi-year contract at the Gold level, the club must allocate their second or third round pick on that player.

History

The Big Bash introduced the overseas player draft in 2022 for BBL|12, which was followed by the introduction of a women's overseas player draft for WBBL|09 the following year.

Now in its fourth year for the men, and third for the women, the two Big Bash drafts are held on the same day, giving the eight clubs in each competition a chance to secure the best overseas talent available for the upcoming season.

Prior to the introduction of the draft, clubs would deal with players and their agents directly to contract them for the upcoming season. The draft process provides fans with more transparency on which overseas stars are available to play in the Big Bash, as well as a level of competitiveness between clubs to try and secure the best players.

Past Players

The biggest names and best performers. Read the the full overseas player history of all eight clubs in the BBL and WBBL!

Click on the club logo below for more individual club history at the draft.

Honour roll

Men

Season	Draft Year	#1 Pick	Club
BBL\|12	2022	Liam Livingstone	Melbourne Renegades
BBL\|13	2023	Rashid Khan (Retention Pick)	Adelaide Strikers
BBL\|14	2024	Ben Duckett	Melbourne Stars
BBL\|15	2025	TBC	Brisbane Heat

Women

Season	Draft Year	#1 Pick	Club
WBBL\|09	2023	Marizanne Kapp	Sydney Thunder
WBBL\|10	2024	Sophie Ecclestone (Retention Pick)	Sydney Sixers
WBBL\|11	2025	TBC	Sydney Sixers

Draft rules

The rules are the same across both the WBBL and BBL. Clubs will take turns selecting from the available players across four rounds.

Clubs must select a minimum of two overseas players in the draft, and must allocate one of their picks to their pre-draft overseas player signing in a round that matches the salary band of that player's contract.

Clubs are allowed to pass during the draft, provided they meet the minimum number of selections. They can also draft the maximum of four players if they wish, salary cap permitting, but one of the four would be considered an overseas replacement player with only three international players permitted on a club's primary list of 18 at any one time during the tournament.

Draft tiers

On draft day, clubs will pick players who have made themselves available to be drafted in one of four salary bands:

Platinum (Round 1 or 2)
Gold (Round 2 or 3)
Silver (Round 3 or 4)
Bronze (Round 4 only)

Players can nominate for as many different salary bands as they want to. The salary bands for both drafts remain unchanged from last year:

Band	WBBL\|11	BBL\|15
Platinum	$110k	$360k-$420k (based on availability)
Gold	$90k	$300k
Silver	$65k	$200k
Bronze	Up to $40k	Up to $100k

Retention pick

Each club is allowed to use one retention pick per draft to keep a player from previous seasons if another team tries to select them. Pre-signed overseas players don't affect retention picks, with each club still eligible to retain one player in the BBL|15 and WBBL|11 drafts.

There are some rules: a club must use their retention pick in the same round that a rival club selects their desired player and can only be used by a club that hasn't already picked a player in that round. Clubs also have just 30 seconds to decide whether to activate their retention pick.

For example, the Sixers used their retention rights to keep James Vince in last year's BBL|14 Draft when the Renegades tried to select him with pick two. The Renegades then picked fellow English batter Laurie Evans with pick three, with the Scorchers electing not to retain him due to salary cap pressure having already pre-signed Finn Allen in the Platinum band.

In the WBBL|10 Draft, the Hurricanes picked four times before eventually securing Danni Wyatt with their first pick after their first three choices – Sophie Ecclestone (Sixers), Heather Knight (Thunder) and Laura Wolvaardt (Strikers) – were all retained by their previous clubs. The Hurricanes then swooped on South African allrounder Chloe Tryon in round two of the draft as the Sixers had already burned their Retention pick.

Players are eligible for retention if they fit any of the following criteria:

Were drafted by a Big Bash team in the previous contract year
Have been in a Big Bash team squad for a minimum of two years (at least one of which was in the past three seasons) and haven't been contracted to another team since
Were in a Big Bash team's squad of 13 for a game in the previous season
Is otherwise approved by the Big Bash Technical Committee due to exceptional circumstances

Pick trades

Clubs are free to trade draft picks with other clubs as part or independently of player trades. The Big Bash draft rules have been tweaked this year to allow clubs to trade for multiple picks in the same round.

However, each club must still have four picks in the draft (regardless of if they pass) and meet the minimum pick threshold of selecting two players in the draft plus allocating a pick to their overseas direct player signing.

Trading picks is becoming increasingly popular since being introduced in the second year of the draft.

Last year, Adelaide Strikers improved their second-round position by two spots, sending paceman Wes Agar to the Sydney Thunder with the two clubs also swapping their second-round picks – the Strikers receiving pick 11 following the weighted lottery and Thunder pick 13.

The Strikers were also involved in a WBBL pick trade, sending picks 19 (round 3) and 30 (round 4) to the Melbourne Renegades and receiving 22 (round 3) and 27 (round 4) in return.