The inaugural edition of the Women’s Big Bash League took place in the year 2015, and the upcoming edition of the league is going to be the 9th edition of the league which will commence on 19th October. Until the last edition, the participating teams had the liberty to pick their overseas players privately. For the first time this year, a draft for the overseas players was announced.
For a player to qualify for the retention eligibility criteria the player must have been a part of the WBBL team for the past two years and hasn’t been contracted to any other team since then, must have been a part of the squad in the previous edition. The first list of the draft was revealed earlier this month.
The draft included some prominent names from different countries, players of the likes of Harmanpreet Kaur (India), Sophie Devine (New Zealand), Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Sune Luus (South Africa), and Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka), all of them having the experience of leading the side at the international level.
A few days ago, the second list of the overseas draft was announced the list included players from England, the likes of Heather Knight, Lauren Bell, Alice Capsey, Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn, Tammy Beaumont, Emma Lamb, Lauren Winfield-Hill, Danni Wyatt, and Issy Wong.
Recently, the third list of the draft was released which included bowlers, the likes of Kate Cross (England), Freya Davies (England), Kate Ebrahim (New Zealand), Hayley Jensen (New Zealand), Fran Jonas (New Zealand), Shabnim Ismail (South Africa), Jess Kerr (New Zealand), Katie Levick (England), Karishma Ramharack (West Indies), Fatima Sana (Pakistan), Pooja Vastrakar (India), and Mady Villiers (England).
The 34-year-old South African pacer Shabnim Ismail is recently involved in the women’s hundred, playing for the Welsh Fire. She is the second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 11 wickets to her name so far, the top wicket-taker for her side, and has played a vital role in helping Welsh Fire seal the play-offs berth.
The 32-year-old leg-spinner from England Katie Levick is playing for the Birmingham Phoenix in the ongoing edition. Birmingham Phoenix is having a season to forget as they have failed to get their first victory of the season and as a result are placed at the bottom of the table. Katie Levick has been one of the positives of the season, as far as the bowling department is concerned. She has been the top wicket-taker of the side with 10 wickets to her name.
The 31-year-old pacer from England Kate Cross, having earlier played for the Manchester Originals made a move to the Northern Superchargers ahead of the third edition of the women’s Hundred. She has picked up five wickets so far in seven innings for the Superchargers. She has also made a handy contribution with the bat lower down the order, scoring 19 runs in three innings so far.
The 27-year-old pacer, Freya Davies is currently playing for the Welsh Fire in the ongoing edition of the women’s Hundred. She has picked up six wickets so far this season. The 24-year-old all-rounder Mady Villiers is playing for the Oval Invincibles, she has picked up two wickets so far.
Exciting news!
Here are the talented bowlers nominated for the inaugural WBBL 2023 draft. Who's your pick for the season ahead? 🤔#CricketTwitter #WBBL pic.twitter.com/xol52naURL
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) August 21, 2023
The 23-year-old all-rounder from India recently played in the ODI series against Bangladesh. She has played for the Brisbane Heat in the Women’s Big Bash league. The 25-year-old pacer from New Zealand Jess Kerr, earlier played for the London Spirit, however, she is not a part of the tournament this year. The 30-year-old pacer Hayley Jensen from New Zealand has also put her name into the overseas draft for the upcoming season of the WBBL. She last played in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa earlier this year.
The 19-year-old left-arm spinner Fran Jonas, and Kate Ebrahim from New Zealand, the 28-year-old off-spinner from West Indies Karishma Ramharack, and the 21-year-old all-rounder from Pakistan are the other players who have enrolled themselves in the inaugural overseas draft ahead of the 9th edition of the WBBL.
The draft order for the 9th edition of the WBBL is as follows, Pick one Sydney Thunder, 2) Melbourne Renegades, 3) Perth Scorchers, 4) Melbourne Stars 5) Hobart Hurricanes, 6) Brisbane Heat, 7) Sydney Sixers. The draft player’s selection will be broadcast live on Fox Cricket on 3rd September 2023.