WBBL: England stars Sophie Ecclestone, Tammy Beaumont among nominations for draft
The world’s best T20 bowler and an Ashes double centurion will play in the WBBL this season, but there’s a big name missing.
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An Ashes double centurion and the world’s best T20 bowler are among 10 English cricketers to nominate for next month’s inaugural WBBL overseas player draft.
The tournament is set to take on a heavy English flavour just weeks after Australia and England fought out a drawn Ashes series, with several overseas players in line for a $110,000 payday if they are deemed “platinum tier” players by league officials.
World No.1 ranked T20 bowler Sophie Ecclestone leads the English contingent in the draft, which will be held on the same night as the BBL edition.
Dynamic batter Tammy Beaumont has also nominated to return to the WBBL, fresh off an incredible home summer that included a double century in the Ashes Test and the all-time highest score in The Hundred after she blasted 118 off 61 balls for the Welsh Fire this week, becoming the first player to make a century in the competition’s history.
Beaumont’s opening partner Emma Lamb has nominated for her first WBBL campaign, but star all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt will not return this summer after five seasons with the Melbourne Stars and Perth Scorchers.
Ecclestone (Sydney Sixers) and Beaumont (Sydney Thunder) are likely to be the retention picks used by their sides, with each team allowed to retain one player who has either spent their most recent two seasons at one club or was contracted last season.
But England captain and world-class batter Heather Knight is also available to the Thunder to be retained after she signed with the side last season but withdrew due to a hip problem.
Melbourne Renegades will face a selection dilemma, with three international captains eligible for their retention pick in Harmanpreet Kaur, Hayley Matthews and Chamari Athapaththu.
The Stars could opt to retain one of English duo Lauren Winfield-Hill and Alice Capsey, while Danielle Wyatt is eligible for retention by the Brisbane Heat.
BBL and WBBL chief Alistair Dobson said there was “immense” strength in the pool of overseas talent available, with more draft nominations to be announced in coming days.
“We are extremely excited by these nominations. We saw the immense strength and depth of talent the English side has in the Women’s Ashes series earlier in the year, and we are excited so many of those players, including their captain, have put their names forward for consideration in the Weber WBBL Overseas Player Draft,” Dobson said.
“With less than three weeks until the draft, the anticipation is growing, and we know our domestic players and clubs alike are keen to see which top international talent will be drafted to their team lists.”
A weighted lottery system has determined the early draft order, but the picks will snake after the first two rounds.
The Thunder, who finished last in 2022-23, holds the first pick in the draft.
Originally published as WBBL: England stars Sophie Ecclestone, Tammy Beaumont among nominations for draft
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