Photo Credit: Sydney Thunder
Big-hitting opener Alex Hales among 70 players from England to nominate for the BBL|12 Draft
Alex Hales, one of Sydney Thunder’s all-time greats, is amongst a massive 70 players from England who have stated their intentions to spend next summer in Australia by nominating for the KFC BBL|12 Draft.
The inaugural Draft for overseas players has attracted some of cricket’s biggest names and now many of England’s short form specialists, including Thunder Nation favourite Hales, have thrown their names into contention.
Thunder has the seventh pick in the first two rounds of the four round draft and also have the ability to retain Hales by activating their Retention Pick, if one of the six clubs ahead of them make a bid for the exciting opener.
Each club can retain one overseas player from their BBL|11 list, regardless of another club’s bid for that player.
Alongside Hales, who has plundered 1857 runs at a strike rate of 151 in his 60 BBL innings for the Renegades, Strikers, Hurricanes and, for the last three seasons, with the Thunder, is T20 powerhouse Liam Livingstone.
Livingstone has become one of the world’s most sought-after short form batters. Equally adept at the top or in the middle order, Livingstone boasts a T20 career strike rate of 146.57 for club and country. He also has seven BBL half centuries to his name from two previous campaigns with the Perth Scorchers.
While Livingstone is not able to be retained by the Scorchers, having last played there two seasons ago, there are nine English Draft nominees eligible for retention by their KFC BBL|11 clubs:
– Joe Clarke (Melbourne Stars)
– Ian Cockbain (Adelaide Strikers)
– Jordan Cox (Hobart Hurricanes)
– Laurie Evans (Perth Scorchers)
– George Garton (Adelaide Strikers)
– Alex Hales (Sydney Thunder)
– Tymal Mills (Perth Scorchers)
– Reece Topley (Melbourne Renegades)
– James Vince (Sydney Sixers)
Among them, Hales is the leading run-scorer among overseas players in the BBL’s history with 1857 runs in 60 matches, with Vince third on that list with 1427 in 54 outings. Evans was the player of the match in the KFC BBL|11 Final after leading the Scorchers to victory with 76 not out.
A host of recent England representatives will be hoping for their first taste of Big Bash action this summer. These include Test number three Ollie Pope, aggressive leg-spinner Matt Parkinson and exciting quicks Brydon Carse and Matthew Potts.
In addition, Jake Ball (formerly Sydney Sixers), Danny Briggs (Adelaide Strikers), Richard Gleeson (Melbourne Renegades), Lewis Gregory (Brisbane Heat) and Benny Howell (Melbourne Renegades) have all nominated for a return to the Big Bash. They are also not eligible for retention.
A full list of all nominations is below.
Trent Woodhill, Big Bash Leagues’ Player Acquisition and Cricket Consultant, called out Hales as one of two players of extreme interest on the list.
“The standard of nominations for the KFC BBL|12 Draft from England is exceptional, headlined by the likes of Liam Livingstone and Alex Hales, two of the world’s leading T20 players,” Woodhill said.
“The list is also filled with players who have shown outstanding recent form in other recent domestic competitions. We know England is a proven producer of top T20 talent.
“We look forward to some robust discussion around these players on Draft night, particularly in regard to the retention picks, with a number of those eligible making a strong case for selection.”
Tickets for this summer’s Thunder WBBL and BBL matches go on-sale to the public at 2pm, August 18 (AEST).
KFC BBL|12 Draft Details
The KFC BBL|12 Draft will be held on Sunday, August 28 and broadcast live on Fox Cricket, available on Foxtel channel 501 and Kayo Sports following Australia’s Dettol ODI series clash against Zimbabwe in Townsville.
The order of selections for the KFC BBL|12 Draft was revealed last week following two weighted lotteries conducted in the presence of authorised officials.
More information on the KFC BBL|12 Draft can be found at cricket.com.au/big-bash.
KFC BBL|12 Draft Nominations
Over 180 players have nominated for the KFC BBL|12 Draft. The 99 players announced to date are below. The League looks forward to announcing further nominations soon.
Afghanistan
Qais Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Waqarullah Ishaq, Rashid Khan, Izharulhaq Naveed, Naveen Ul Haq Murid, Hazratullah Zazai
England
Colin Ackermann (also Netherlands), Rehan Ahmed, Martin Andersson, Gus Atkinson, Josh Baker, Sonny Baker, Jake Ball, James Bracey, Danny Briggs, Henry Brookes, Brydon Carse, Matthew Carter, Jordan Clark, Joe Clarke, Josh Cobb, Ian Cockbain, Jordan Cox, Mason Crane, Matt Critchley, Liam Dawson, Brett D’oliveira, Jacobus Leus Du Plooy, Stephen Eskinazi, Laurie Evans, Matt Fisher, James Fuller, George Garton, Richard Gleeson, Lewis Gregory, Sam Hain, Alex Hales, Miles Hammond, Tom Hartley, Jack Haynes, Freddie Heldreich, Tom Helm, Ryan Higgins, Max Holden, Benny Howell, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Danny Lamb, Jack Leaning, Jake Lintott, Liam Livingstone, Lewis Mcmanus, Ben Mike, Tymal Mills, Daniel Mousley, Steven Mullaney, Callum Parkinson, Matt Parkinson, David Payne, Michael Pepper, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Ben, Raine, Adam Rossington, George Scrimshaw, John Simpson, Prem Sisodiya, Olly Stone, Tommy Taylor, Reece Topley, Liam Trevaskis, James Vince, Joe Weatherley, Ross Whiteley, Chris Wood, Luke Wood, Saif Zaib
Namibia
David Wiese (previously South Africa)
New Zealand
Todd Astle, Colin Munro
South Africa
Marchant de Lange, Faf du Plessis, Rilee Rossouw
West Indies
Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Chemar Holder, Akeal Hosein, Evin Lewis, Anderson Phillip, Kieron Pollard, Khary Pierre, Ravi Rampaul, Sherfane Rutherford, Jayden Seales, Kevin Sinclair, Tion Webster, Nyeem Young
Name of Author: Sydney Thunder
The Sydney Thunder is an Australian professional cricket team competing in the Big Bash League (BBL). Based at Sydney Showground Stadium, the Thunder, along with the Sydney Sixers, succeeded the New South Wales Blues from the defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash.
