Last Sunday evening, the first ever Big Bash Draft for the upcoming BBL12 season took place, where more than 300 players were up for grabs from 20 countries.
With only 24 possible positions, all the BBL sides fought for world class cricketers, with approximately $6 million in salary contracts going up for grabs.
During the night, there were plenty of decisions to be made, but some teams did much better than others.
Melbourne Renegades
Liam Livingstone created history by being the first-ever BBL draft pick. After a poor season in BBL11, the Melbourne Renegades needed to come out of this draft in a much better position than they entered, and they now have. England's powerhouse striker, Liam Livingstone is one of the current best players in the world and will likely open the batting for the Renegades throughout the season, most likely with Aaron Finch or Shaun Marsh.
Liam Livingstone.
Let’s look at some of the other teams’ decisions throughout the night:
Hobart Hurricanes
The Hobart Hurricanes went all out on Pakistan players, with Shadab Khan being their most notable and strongest selection on the night. Khan is an underrated bowler who can also hit big later in the innings and will provide strength to compliment other power hitters in the team such as Tim David.
Sydney Thunder
The Sydney Thunder came out of this draft as winners. The Thunder decided to select Englishman, David Willey due to his ability with bat and ball which will be necessary for a weaker Thunder middle order. Thunder have also decided to bring back Alex Hales as he has proven and shown his skills at the top of the order in previous years. Last pick for the Thunder was South African, Rilee Rossouw who was the steal of the draft as he is severely underrated and has recently been showing classy performances at the top level.
Sydney Sixers
The Sydney Sixers have gone back to what they know best with England's Chris Jordan and James Vince, both players have been proven performers in the past.
Adelaide Strikers
The Adelaide Strikers have once again taken Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan who will be important with both bat and ball for the Strikers to have success. In addition, New Zealander, Colin De Grandhomme was another player selected by the Strikers however, De Grandhomme’s limited availability will be a downside.
Perth Scorchers
The Perth Scorchers made the surprising decision to pass on their first pick, most likely to maintain a balanced salary cap. The most notable and smartest pick from the Scorchers was retaining Laurie Evans as he was excellent last year. His availability is a massive plus for the Scorchers as well.
Melbourne Stars
The Melbourne Stars originally wanted Rashid Khan with their first pick but had to move on to New Zealand's Trent Boult after the Strikers retained Khan. Boult is a very solid pick for a side that needs an experienced quick bowler. However, his inability to do anything with the bat could be an issue throughout the season. Joe Clarke has also been selected to play another season at the Stars at the top order as well as fellow Englishman, Luke Wood being selected as a solid all-rounder as their final pick.
Brisbane Heat
The Brisbane Heat went looking for power hitters this draft as they selected England's Sam Billings and New Zealand’s Colin Munro. The Heat have struggled with the bat in recent years, especially in the top order. Billings and Munro both have the skills and capability to change Heat’s recent form and become a threatening batting duo.
The one disappointing takeaway from the draft which has been a major blow for Cricket Australia includes the absences of players such as Faf Du Plessis, Jason Roy, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell and Dwayne Bravo. Cricket Australia had hoped the BBL draft would attract big names to the league to reinvigorate it.
Andre Russell.
With many of the elite players on offer having only limited availability, BBL clubs resisted at the chance to give out $1.7 million to these international T20 superstars.
Instead, they opted for players who could feature for the entire tournament, making England dynamo, Liam Livingstone the number one pick of the draft because of not only his skill, but availability.
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