The Hundred returns in 2022 after the inaugural edition of English cricket’s franchise short-format competition was held last year. Pre-tournament favourites Southern Brave became the first men’s champions, and will be hoping to again assemble a strong squad in the player draft. Teams were permitted to retain up to ten men’s players from 2021, negotiating new contracts during the retention window. After the retention period, there are 42 open spots across the eight teams to be filled in a snake-draft system held remotely.
Welsh Fire have the most spots to fill, with seven, while the defending champions and Trent Rockets have only four players to recruit. London Spirit have the top pick having finished last in 2021. Each team has a single “Right to Match” card that can be used to match the bid made by another outfit for a player under contract in 2021, provided they have a pick in the necessary salary band. 17 overseas and 25 domestic players will be slotted to teams during the draft, before squads are filled out by one overseas and one domestic wildcard in July.
While international commitments may impact on availability, there are a number of high-profile overseas stars likely to attract top-bracket attention – with David Warner, Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell chief among them. Batters Laurie Evans, who failed to agree a retention deal with the Oval Invincibles, and Joe Clarke could capitalise on strong winter performances and be high-ticket domestic options.
