Cricket Australia (CA) has introduced a multi-year contract structure for overseas players, as a means to solve the problem of players leaving midway during the Big Bash League (BBL) and the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL). However, the draft will continue as the multi-year contracts will be signed outside of the draft.
CA announced Monday that each club will be permitted to sign one overseas player to a maximum three-year deal in both the men’s and women’s competitions, allowing them to skip the lottery of the draft and negotiate directly with the team of their choice.
The caveat is that from WBBL|11 and BBL|15 onwards (the 2025 season on), they are required to be available for the entire season including finals, which is designed in part to help reduce the loss of international players to rival T20 leagues in the second half of the men’s Big Bash season.
The women’s global T20 calendar is also becoming increasingly crowded with India’s Women’s Premier League, England’s Hundred, as well as competitions in Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe established since 2020.
“We have worked closely with clubs and the ACA (Australian Cricketers’ Association) to continue developing and enhancing the Big Bash, and a key focus has been ensuring the best players continue to compete in the Big Bash, and for longer periods,” said Alistair Dobson, CA’s general manager of Big Bash Leagues.
“The opportunity for international players to ink multi-year deals with teams not only strengthens the league’s global appeal but also provides clubs with greater stability and strategic planning capabilities.”
In the past two BBL seasons – since the inception of South Africa’s new SA20 franchise league (beginning in early January) and the UAE’s International League T20 competition (beginning in mid-January) – Big Bash clubs have found it increasingly difficult to keep overseas talent for the entire season despite the introduction of a new draft system prior to BBL|12.
That includes last season’s champions Brisbane Heat who lost both stand-in captain Colin Munro and wicketkeeper Sam Billings to the UAE competition before the finals, with Paul Walter their only remaining overseas player.
Beaten finalists the Sydney Sixers also lost opener James Vince to the UAE, Adelaide Strikers – who were defeated by the Heat in the Challenger – lost Adam Hose and Jamie Overton, while Perth Scorchers saw crowd favourite Laurie Evans depart, meaning all four BBL|13 finalists were impacted during the crucial knockout phase of the season.
The new multi-year signing rule comes into immediate effect, with the men’s contracting embargo for BBL|14 lifted Monday.
Clubs can pre-sign overseas players on one-, two- or three-year deals at one of the existing draft salary bands (Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze) or at a negotiated price above the Platinum rate, which was $420,000 per season for men’s players in BBL|13 or $110,000 for women in WBBL|09.
Draft salary bands
Band WBBL|09 BBL|13
Platinum $110k $420k
Gold $90k $300k
Silver $65k $200k
Bronze $40k $100k
(All figures for A$; current exchange rate A$100 = $65)
Clubs will still be required to draft a minimum of two overseas players each season regardless of whether they have pre-signed a player or not.
Retention rules also do not apply as the direct signing takes place outside of the draft, which gives rival clubs the opportunity to test the allegiance of stars such as Rashid Khan or Alex Hales with a more lucrative offer.
