The overseas player draft for the 2025-26 seasons of the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) and Big Bash League (BBL) will be held on Thursday, June 19, ushering in a fresh season of top-class cricket in Australia. The WBBL draft starts at 4 PM AEST and is followed without a gap by the BBL draft. These drafts enable every one of the eight clubs in each of the competitions to choose from a large number of international players to complete their rosters.

How the Draft Operates

The draft is a formal four-round format.

• Round 1: Platinum players only
• Round 2: Platinum and Gold
• Round 3: Gold and Silver (in reverse order)
• Round 4: Silver and Bronze

Every team needs to pick at least two overseas players except for their pre-signed players. Clubs can miss only one round. Every team has already pre-signed one overseas player prior to the draft, and players have to be assigned to a round according to how much they are earning on their contracts. Clubs can also pick a fourth overseas player as a substitute.

Draft Order

Draft order was determined through a weighted lottery based on the standings of the prior season.

• WBBL Round 1 Order: 1. Sydney Sixers, 2. Adelaide Strikers, 3. Melbourne Stars, 4. Perth Scorchers, 5. Hobart Hurricanes, 6. Sydney Thunder, 7. Melbourne Renegades, 8. Brisbane Heat.
• BBL Round 1 Order: 1. Brisbane Heat, 2. Adelaide Strikers, 3. Melbourne Renegades, 4. Perth Scorchers, 5. Hobart Hurricanes, 6. Sydney Sixers, 7. Melbourne Stars, 8. Sydney Thunder.

There was a trade in the BBL draft, with the Thunder and Scorchers exchanging picks in the second and third rounds.

Pre-signed Players (Prior to Draft)

• Adelaide Strikers: Laura Wolvaardt, Jamie Overton
• Brisbane Heat: Nadine de Klerk, Colin Munro
• Hobart Hurricanes: TBC, Chris Jordan
• Melbourne Renegades: Hayley Matthews, Tim Seifert
• Melbourne Stars: Marizanne Kapp, Tom Curran
• Perth Scorchers: Sophie Devine, Finn Allen
• Sydney Sixers: Amelia Kerr, Babar Azam
• Sydney Thunder: Chamari Athapaththu, Sam Billings

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Notable Overseas Nominees

More than 600 overseas players have thrown their names into the pool for the upcoming WBBL and BBL drafts, which promises to be a great mix of talent from around the globe. The BBL has some exciting names included in the nominations, including Pakistani superstars Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf, and Mohammad Rizwan. England's T20 hitters include Jofra Archer, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, and Alex Hales. All of these big names are among the nominations for the BBL, along with New Zealand's Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee, and Kane Williamson, who has declared himself available for three matches. Bangladesh's Mustafizur Rahman and West Indies speed demon Shamar Joseph round out the marquee BBL names.

For the WBBL, we have some Indian stars with award-winning resumes. Jemimah Rodrigues, Shikha Pandey, and Yastika Bhatia have all made nominations to the process. West Indies' Deandra Dottin and Pakistan's Fatima Sana also add some firepower to the draft. England has featured great players like Sophie Ecclestone, Heather Knight, Danni Wyatt, and Alice Capsey, while South Africa's Shabnim Ismail and Chloe Tryon help improve the quality of nominations.

Player Salaries

WBBL:

• Platinum: $110,000
• Gold: $90,000
• Silver: $65,000
• Bronze: up to $40,000

BBL:

• Platinum: $360,000-$420,000
• Gold: $300,000
• Silver: $200,000
• Bronze: up to $100,000

Retention and Replacement Rules

Each club can have a single retention pick, typically for players who played or signed for the team the season before. Replacement players will need to be selected from the draft pool unless sanctioned under exceptional circumstances.

Season Timeline and Scheduling Conflicts

• WBBL: Late October to early December
• BBL: Mid-December to late January

The BBL would face schedule conflicts with other competing leagues such as ILT20 (Dec 2 - Jan 4) and SA20 (Dec 26 - Jan 26). Yet, Cricket Australia still has hope that international stars could be free for the second part of the season and playoffs.

See Also: MLC 2025: Points Table, leading run scorers, and wicket takers after WAS vs LAS Match 8

Although there were initial worries about the clash of T20 leagues causing overseas players to miss the BBL, Dobson was feeling positive about this season having better outcomes than in earlier years. He highlighted the fact that instead of a mass exodus at the later stages of the BBL, it's possible that some of the players playing in the ILT20 would be available for the back end of the tournament and finals. He added that this coincided with Australia’s Test stars’ availability, as no international matches are scheduled in January after the Ashes series.

"I think so," Dobson told ESPNcricinfo. "We probably pay more attention to our teams and players and who wants to come and play in the Big Bash. And we're hearing from players that they still love coming to the BBL. It's a bucket list for many of them. We're always looking at windows and player availability, but ultimately, I think our job is to make sure our comp is as appealing as it can be."

The 2025 drafts promise high drama and strategic decisions as clubs shape their overseas core. With global superstars up for grabs and new scheduling dynamics in play, this draft season is shaping up to be one of the most competitive yet.