Duckett, Vince among 14 England players picked in BBL overseas draft

New Delhi, Sep 1 (IANS) Ben Duckett, James Vince and Laurie Evans were among 14 England players who got picked by teams in the Big Bash League (BBL) overseas draft held on Sunday.
Duckett, the England opener who’s well-established in Tests, was the first pick in the draft and roped in by Melbourne Stars. His country-mate Vince was the second player to be selected after Sydney Sixers opted to retain him.
Perth Scorchers opted to not use their retention pick for Evans, and he was snapped by Melbourne Renegades, while Jamie Overton was picked by Adelaide Strikers and Jacob Bethell was selected by Melbourne Renegades in second round.
Sydney Thunder chose to rope in New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson, while Shai Hope was taken in by Hobart Hurricanes, with a strong influence of Ricky Ponting behind his signing as the duo were together at Delhi Capitals in IPL 2024. Brisbane Heat and Perth Scorchers ended the first round through their pre-signed players Colin Munro and Finn Allen.
Adelaide Strikers roped in West Indies’ spin all-rounder Fabian Allen while Sydney Thunder opted to take in Sherfane Rutherford. Melbourne Stars opted for Pakistan leg-spinner Usama Mir, while Hobart Hurricanes got in impressive Bangladesh leg-spinner Rishad Hossain, who got his first overseas T20 league stint.
Defending champions Brisbane Heat picked left-arm fast bowler Paul Walter and batter Tom Alsop, followed by Scorchers signing in wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Hurst and batter Keaton Jennings, before Sixers ended the draft by signing leg-spinner Jafer Chohan. The 2024/25 Big Bash League begins on December 15 and ends on January 25, 2025.
“The Big Bash remains a destination of choice for the world’s best players, as reflected by the calibre of nominations received and the players recruited today. We thank all players and their agents who put themselves forward for this year’s Drafts,” said Alistair Dobson, Cricket Australia’s Executive General Manager, Big Bash Leagues.
2024 BBL overseas draft results
Ben Duckett (Melbourne Stars, Platinum)
James Vince (Sydney Sixers, Platinum, Retention Pick)
Laurie Evans (Melbourne Renegades, Platinum)
Lockie Ferguson (Sydney Thunder, Platinum)
Shai Hope (Hobart Hurricanes, Platinum)
Jamie Overton (Adelaide Strikers, Platinum)
Colin Munro (Brisbane Heat, Platinum, Pre-Signed Player)
Finn Allen (Perth Scorchers, Platinum, Pre-Signed Player)
Tom Curran (Melbourne Stars, Platinum, Pre-Signed Player)
Jacob Bethell (Melbourne Renegades, Gold)
Ollie Pope (Adelaide Strikers, Gold, Pre-Signed Player)
Chris Jordan (Hobart Hurricanes, Platinum, Pre-Signed Player)
Sam Billings (Sydney Thunder, Platinum, Pre-Signed Player)
Paul Walter (Brisbane Heat, Gold)
Akeal Hosein (Sydney Sixers, Gold, Pre-Signed Player)
Matthew Hurst (Perth Scorchers, Silver)
Fabian Allen (Adelaide Strikers, Silver)
Sherfane Rutherford (Sydney Thunder, Silver)
Tim Seifert (Melbourne Renegades, Gold, Pre-Signed Player)
Usama Mir (Melbourne Stars, Silver)
Rishad Hossain (Hobart Hurricanes, Bronze)
Tom Alsop (Brisbane Heat, Bronze)
Keaton Jennings (Perth Scorchers, Bronze)
Jafer Chohan (Sydney Sixers, Bronze)
–IANS
nr/bc