David Warner, Andre Russell, Babar Azam are in the list of prominent international stars who have registered their names for the draft procedure of the 2022 edition of The Hundred, which will be played from August 3 to September 3.
Warner’s inclusion is of great interest as he has registered himself in the most expensive Hundred draft category of 125,000 pounds. Babar has put himself in the same bracket of players, while Russell interestingly has his name up for grabs one category below with a base sum of 100,000 pounds.
This will be Warner’s maiden stint in The Hundred. The experienced left-hander was due to turn up for team Southern Brave in the inaugural season last English summer but opted out of the deal, citing Covid-related issues, which made travelling a difficult prospect.
But the star performer of the T20 World Cup 2021 now looks set to flex his muscles with the bat in The Hundred and fetch the highest-prize contract with one of the eight teams. Warner is the second high-profile Aussie to put his name in the highest category at the draft after fellow T20 World Cup hero and allrounder Mitchell Marsh.
Apart from the trio of Warner, Babar and Marsh, the names of Chris Gayle, Tabraiz Shamsi, Sunil Narine, and Kieron Pollard also glint the top-tier category with their presence. Below them, in the category with a base prize of 100,000 pounds are Shakib Al Hasan, Quinton de Kock and Jhye Richardson apart from Russell among the overseas gents.
The men’s draft for The Hundred 2022 will be held on April 4 behind closed doors, with the deals announced the day later. The Hundred teams have already made multiple retentions from their respective squads at the last year’s tournaments and will be hoping to rebuild strong playing contingents around them.
Given their last-placed finish in 2021, London Spirits will get the first go at the draft procedure, with the aim to ensure a level-playing field for all teams. A total of 42 places, including top-tier category spots, are due to be filled at the draft.
