Heather Knight, James Anderson and Rocky Flintoff among names for Hundred draft
More than 800 players have registered to vie for a place in this summer’s competition.
England captain Heather Knight, Ashes antagonist David Warner, 42-year-old James Anderson and 16-year-old Rocky Flintoff are among the eye-catching names up for grabs in next week’s Hundred draft.
More than 800 players have registered to vie for a place in this summer’s competition, with the vast majority braced for disappointment next Wednesday, when 39 slots will be filled in the men’s tournament and 29 in the women’s edition.
London Spirit did not include Knight on their close-season retention list but are almost certain to use their right-to-match card to retain her in the top £65,000 pay bracket.
That is £135,000 less than the top wage tier for men, a fact Knight reportedly raised at the Professional Cricketers’ Association AGM, suggesting this year’s widening of the gender pay differential “looks bad” at a time when greater investment is being poured in to the format.
As ever, the identity of the overseas signings will draw much of the attention. With eight places available for international stars in the men’s competition, Warner is among those throwing his hat into the ring.
Now retired, the left-hander is fully available and comes in with a £120,000 reserve. Steve Smith, who has just ended his ODI career, has already signed for Welsh Fire and a host of Australians including Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa are also priced at £120,000, while Jake Fraser-McGurk has pitched himself in the lower £78,500 band.
New Zealand are also well represented, with Rachin Ravindra, Matt Henry and Will O’Rourke all in the field. Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad stands alone among the overseas contingent at entering at the maximum price tag of £200,000 and has reportedly already been lined up by Manchester Originals.
England paceman Mark Wood’s recent injury issues mean he is unlikely to sign up at this point, with his £200,000 reserve essentially a placeholder in case he appears as a replacement player at a later stage.
All-rounder Jamie Overton is in with a base of £78,500 but is enough demand to pick up significantly more, while Test opener Zak Crawley is also available following his release from the Spirit.
Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Rehan Ahmed, Dan Lawrence, Reece Topley and David Willey are among a host of England-capped players seeking deals.
Rocky Flintoff, emerging England Lions prospect and son of Northern Supercharges head coach Andrew Flintoff, leads a group of up and coming talents looking to attract interest, joining Michael Vaughan’s son Archie and others such as Hamza Sheikh, Ben McKinney and Rehan’s younger brother Farhan.
At the other end of the spectrum, it emerged earlier this week that England’s record wicket-taker Anderson had put himself forward for a tournament he has previously worked on exclusively as a TV pundit.
In the women’s draft, Sophia Dunkley is expected to head back to Welsh Fire, Paige Schofield may be bound for Oval Invincibles and the likes of Emma Lamb, Mady Villiers and Issy Wong are sure to be picked.
India’s Richa Ghosh is the only player to take a £65,000 base, with Birmingham Phoenix the only team with both an overseas place and the correct pay band space to accommodate her. Australia’s Alyssa Healy will he highly sought at £50,000.
