The big talking points from WBBL overseas draft

Hurricanes get Wyatt after retention strikeouts

The WBBL draft got off to a somewhat bizarre start as the Hurricanes ensured three other clubs immediately used up their retention picks.

They went after Sophie Ecclestone first, and she became the official No.1 pick when the Sixers exercised their right to keep the star spinner, who missed last season's WBBL due to injury but remained eligible for retention.

The Canes tried their luck with Heather Knight (retained by the Thunder) and Laura Wolvaardt (Strikers) followed before the Hurricanes finally landed on Danni Wyatt, securing the England opener when the Scorchers opted against retaining her.

Speaking after the draft, Hurricanes coach Jude Coleman said the club had strongly suspected their first three options would be retained – and there was definite method to the madness.

How are retention rights determined?

 

Players are eligible for retention if they fit any of the following criteria:

 

- Was drafted by a Big Bash team in the previous contract year

 

- Have been in a Big Bash team squad for a minimum of two years (at least one of which was in the past three seasons) and hasn't been contracted to another team since

 

- Was in a Big Bash team's squad of 13 for a game in the previous season

 

- Is otherwise approved by the Big Bash Technical Committee due to exceptional circumstances

"We planned to make people retain, and they did that, and we thought we might get Danni, and we're pumped that that's gone that way," Coleman told cricket.com.au.

"The big one for us was Sophie Ecclestone – she’s a great get, we did think the Sixers would retain her … we hoped that they wouldn't have enough money, but they've somehow got pretty big pockets.

"But that meant that we could get Chloe Tryon in that second round (because) the Sixers couldn't retain her."

Ultimately, the Hurricanes have gone for firepower all through their batting order, with Tryon and Lizelle Lee their other two picks.

That meant express quick Shabnim Ismail found her way back to the Sydney Thunder – where she played a key role in winning their first title in WBBL|06 – after the Hurricanes elected not to keep the speedster.

Coleman explained an injury to local leg-spinner Amy Smith had played into the decision to go after Tryon, who offers left-arm spin alongside her explosive middle-order batting.

"We're a pretty solid local line-up with the bat, but we have probably lacked middle-order hitters so Chloe's a big part of that, and Danni's just a world-class opener," Coleman said.

"Shabs was great for us last year (but) it probably came down to an injury that we've had in the lead up … so we're covering that as well, but a big part of Chloe's selection is her power with the bat."

India stars popular – but no room for Harmanpreet

Six Indians in total were picked up in the draft, with their broader availability, particularly at the back end of the tournament, making them an attractive prospect for clubs.

India will play New Zealand in three ODIs in late October, but their players will only miss 1-2 WBBL matches. With India then set to play Australia in three ODIs in Brisbane and Perth shortly after the end of the Big Bash, they should be available through finals.

Who your team picked

Adelaide Strikers: Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa), Smriti Mandhana (India), Orla Prendergast (Ireland)

 

Brisbane Heat: Jemimah Rodrigues (India), Shikha Pandey (India), Nadine de Klerk (South Africa)

 

Hobart Hurricanes: Danni Wyatt (England), Chloe Tryon (South Africa), Lizelle Lee (South Africa)

 

Melbourne Renegades: Deandra Dottin (West Indies), Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Alice Capsey (England)

 

Melbourne Stars: Deepti Sharma (India), Marizanne Kapp (South Africa), Yastika Bhatia (India)

 

Perth Scorchers: Sophie Devine (New Zealand), Amy Jones (England), Dayalan Hemalatha (India)

 

Sydney Sixers: Sophie Ecclestone (England), Amelia Kerr (New Zealand), Hollie Armitage (England)

 

Sydney Thunder: Heather Knight (England), Shabnim Ismail (South Africa), Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka), Georgia Adams (England)

Smriti Mandhana had already been revealed as the Strikers’ pre-signing last week and will return to the WBBL for the first time since WBBL|07. When round one of the draft got underway, she was quickly joined by Deepti Sharma (Stars) and Jemimah Rodrigues (Heat).

Sharma, drafted after a strong Hundred for London Spirit alongside Stars skipper Meg Lanning, will be one of two India players at the club this season, with keeper-batter Yastika Bhatia to make her Big Bash debut.

Rodrigues will play alongside Shikha Pandey at the Heat, while the Scorchers surprised some with the left-field selection of batter Dayalan Hemalatha, who impressed Perth opener Beth Mooney when the pair played together at Gujarat Giants in the Women’s Premier League earlier this year.

"She's certainly been one that I've kept my eye on the last couple of years in the WPL and she's made her way into the Indian squad for the World Cup," Mooney told cricket.com.au.

"She's a pretty explosive player and can clear the boundary better than most people so I'm just pumped to have her, I thoroughly enjoyed batting with her this year at Gujarat.

"You want your players available for as long as possible, especially heading into the back end of tournaments so I'm pretty pumped with those decisions we made."

But there was one significant name not called out at the draft: that of India captain and WBBL|07 Player of the Tournament Harmanpreet Kaur.

Kaur was taken by the Renegades with pick No.10 in last year’s draft, but this year they instead looked to the pace-bowling all-round option of Deandra Dottin. Speaking of …

Dottin’s downtime no deterrent for Renegades

The Renegades’ move to draft Dottin in the first round raised some eyebrows.

Although the West Indian allrounder’s star power, track record and talent are undeniable, she also went almost 12 months without playing an elite game of cricket between the 2023 and 2024 editions of the Women’s Caribbean Premier League after missing out on WBBL|09 and this year’s WPL and The Hundred.

But she showed glimpses of her class in the recently concluded WCPL in Trinidad and Tobago, hitting a 38-ball 53 for Trinbago Knight Riders, while Dottin also announced in July she was coming out of international retirement, reversing the decision she made in mid-2022 citing issues with team management.

After last playing for West Indies at the 2022 ODI World Cup in New Zealand, she has been included in their squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in the UAE which will conclude shortly before the start of WBBL|10.

"We did a lot of work with Deandra and her management over the last couple of weeks to get comfortable (with where she’s at)," Renegades general manager James Rosengarten said on Channel Seven.

"She’s been doing really well in the CPL at the moment so we’re happy."