Cricket Australia introduces draft system to pick overseas players in BBL-12

Cricket Australia on Wednesday announced the introduction of an IPL-style draft system to pick overseas players in the upcoming edition of the Big Bash League. With the BBL 12 scheduled to start in December, the draft is expected to take place in the next few months.

According to the draft system, each team will have to pick a minimum of two and a maximum of three players.

The Australian cricket board said that though the draft is designed to attract the best available foreign players, the overall objective is to give BBL a more competitive edge in the international market, and also provide new opportunities to the teams taking part in the competition. The draft order will also be determined by a weighted lottery system with the three teams that missed the finals of the BBL 11 being entered first to determine the first three selections, CA further said.

There will be four categories and players will be nominated in four rounds — Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze — with those in the Platinum Group set to be in the highest payment category.