Steve Smith, left, and David Warner are two of the six top tier players for The Hundred
Steve Smith, left, and David Warner are two of the six top tier players for The Hundred

The Hundred: Steve Smith and David Warner among most expensive players


A total of 570 players have put their names forward to be drafted for next year's inaugural season of The Hundred, with Australian pair Steve Smith and David Warner among those with the heftiest price tags.

The eight franchises have already filled three positions in their squad - one centrally contracted England Test player and two local 'icons' apiece - and will choose another 12 during Sunday's televised draft.

Of those, a maximum of three can be overseas players - meaning just 24 are due to be picked up out of 239 foreign stars who have thrown their names into the hat.

Only six carry the top tier £125,000 reserve, with Ashes adversaries Smith and Warner joined by compatriot Mitchell Starc, big-hitting West Indian batsman Chris Gayle, Sri Lanka veteran Lasith Malinga and South African quick Kagiso Rabada.

Another 17 have entered at a minimum of £100,000 with further brackets between £40,000 and £75,000 and a large field carrying no reserve at all. No Indian players will be involved in the draft.

Captains receive a bonus of £10,000, but if a player's reserve price is not met, they will not be selected during the main draft.

There are 331 domestic players hoping to land a deal, only 19 of whom have opted to set a base price.

The Hundred
The Hundred is made up of eight franchises, with men and women teams

World Cup winning seamers Mark Wood and Liam Plunkett are available at £60,000 and £50,000 respectively, with Liam Livingstone, Samit Patel and Joe Denly joining Wood in the higher bracket.

Ian Bell, Olly Stone, Sam Billings and Morne Morkel are among the other notable names to name their fee, but the overwhelming majority of entrants are willing to take their chance on the night.

Head coaches will have 100 seconds to make each selection on Sunday night at 1900 BST, recruiting two names per round until the rosters are complete. The order of the day's first picks has already been set, with Nottingham-based Trent Rockets getting first choice and Birmingham Phoenix up last.

The inaugural 100-ball competition will then take place next summer from 17 July to 16 August.

There is no draft for the women's competition, but each side has already selected two centrally contracted female England players.

Between now and 30 May, teams will fill the remaining 13 places in their women's squads - they are permitted to sign one more contracted England player and a maximum of three overseas players, with the rest of the squad made up of domestic players.

The women's seven salary brackets are: £15,000, £12,000, £9,000, £7,200, £6,000, £4,800 and £3,600. Captains receive a £1,200 bonus.

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