Leg Buys: Club by club guide, mail ahead of WBBL and BBL drafts, stars could be overlooked due to fixture clashes

The Big Bash overseas drafts for both the BBL and WBBL make their return this Sunday and DANIEL CHERNY has the latest on how it will work for each club.

The Big Bash overseas drafts return on Sunday. It’s the third instalment of the event for the BBL and second for the WBBL, but there has been a significant structural change from previous editions of the event.

In a move designed to provide a greater incentive for top overseas players to commit to the Big Bash ahead of rival franchise leagues, Cricket Australia allowed each club to sign one player in both the men’s and women’s pools to multi year deals ahead of the drafts.

Each of these players will still be considered a draft pick on the day, filling a spot in one of the predetermined draft bands – platinum, gold, silver or bronze – depending on the terms of their contracts. The overwhelming majority of the men’s pre-signings are expected to fall into either the platinum or gold tiers.

Unlike in previous years, clubs do not have to pass in a particular round and can take up to four players across the draft, although one of these would need to serve as a replacement player as clubs can only have three overseas players on their primary list at any given time.

Realistically however clubs are likely to only take three primary overseas players (including their pre-signing) in each draft and seek to fill any eventual vacancies as replacement players down the track.

The player retention mechanism remains in place meaning clubs can use a pick to match a bid on a player most recently tied to them so long as they have an available pick in the same round of the draft. Clubs can only activate one retention pick per draft. Pre-signings are excluded, meaning for example that Hobart does not need to use a retention selection on Chris Jordan, who played for the Hurricanes last season but has already committed directly on a multi-year deal.

Hobart will not need to use a retention pick on Chris Jordan. Picture: Albert Perez/Getty Images

As ever, player availability is an enormous factor when it comes to the drafts. The arrival on the scene in recent years of the UAE-based ILT20 league and SA20 competition in South Africa has dramatically hindered men’s player availability, particularly towards the back half of the season, while clubs also have to contend with bilateral series.

It means that high-profile quicks Jofra Archer, Lungi Ngidi and Shamar Joseph could all conceivably be bypassed in the draft and are more likely options as replacement players closer to the season.

This is increasingly an issue in the WBBL too, even after the league’s regular season was reduced from 14 to 10 games per team to deal with calendar congestion. Some Indian and New Zealand players will miss the start of the season because of their bilateral series while a South Africa-England overlaps with the tail end of the season including finals.

Jofra Archer in action during recently completed The Hundred competition. Picture: Steven Paston/PA Images via Getty Images

With all that in mind, here’s a look at how each club is shaping and what insiders are suggesting they will do with their picks when meeting at Melbourne’s NEP studios on Father’s Day.

Originally published as Leg Buys: Club by club guide, mail ahead of WBBL and BBL drafts, stars could be overlooked due to fixture clashes