The BBL 2025 draft was exciting as 16 overseas players joined eight Australian teams, where all teams tried to get the best players for their squads. Teams wanted Pakistan and England players the most, with Shaheen Afridi getting picked first.
The draft had four rounds where teams could pick different types of players. Some teams spent big money on star players while others looked for cheaper options that could still help them win games.
This guide shows you everything that happened in the draft. You will see who each team picked, how much they paid, and which teams made the smartest choices to build winning squads.
BBL Draft Stats
Here’s a quick overview of the BBL draft numbers:
| Category | Number of Players |
|---|---|
| Total Players Drafted | 16 |
| Countries Represented | 7 |
| English Players | 6 |
| Pakistan Players | 4 |
| New Zealand Players | 2 |
| South African Players | 2 |
| West Indies Players | 1 |
| Bangladesh Players | 1 |
BBL Draft Results By Rounds
The draft took place over four rounds. Here’s what happened in each round:
Round 1 (Platinum Players Only)
| Pick | Player | Team | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shaheen Afridi | Brisbane Heat | Pakistan |
| 2 | Haris Rauf | Melbourne Stars | Pakistan |
| 3 | Luke Wood | Adelaide Strikers | England |
| 4 | Mohammad Rizwan | Melbourne Renegades | Pakistan |
| 5 | Finn Allen* | Perth Scorchers | New Zealand |
| 6 | Chris Jordan* | Hobart Hurricanes | England |
| 7 | Sam Curran | Sydney Sixers | England |
| 8 | Lockie Ferguson | Sydney Thunder | New Zealand |
Round 2 (Platinum and Gold Players)
| Pick | Player | Team | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colin Munro* | Brisbane Heat | New Zealand |
| 2 | Jamie Overton* | Adelaide Strikers | England |
| 3 | Hassan Khan | Melbourne Renegades | South Africa |
| 4 | Shadab Khan | Sydney Thunder | Pakistan |
| 5 | Rishad Hossain | Hobart Hurricanes | Bangladesh |
| 6 | Babar Azam* | Sydney Sixers | Pakistan |
| 7 | Tom Curran* | Melbourne Stars | England |
| 8 | Pass | Perth Scorchers | – |
Round 3 (Gold and Silver Players – Reverse Order)
| Pick | Player | Team | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Laurie Evans | Perth Scorchers | England |
| 2 | Joe Clarke | Melbourne Stars | England |
| 3 | Pass | Sydney Sixers | – |
| 4 | Pass | Hobart Hurricanes | – |
| 5 | Sam Billings* | Sydney Thunder | England |
| 6 | Tim Seifert* | Melbourne Renegades | New Zealand |
| 7 | Hassan Ali | Adelaide Strikers | Pakistan |
| 8 | Pass | Brisbane Heat | – |
Round 4 (Silver and Bronze Players)
| Pick | Player | Team | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Alsop | Brisbane Heat | England |
| 2 | Pass | Adelaide Strikers | – |
| 3 | Pass | Melbourne Renegades | – |
| 4 | David Payne | Perth Scorchers | England |
| 5 | Rehan Ahmed | Hobart Hurricanes | England |
| 6 | Jafer Chohan | Sydney Sixers | England |
| 7 | Pass | Melbourne Stars | – |
| 8 | Pass | Sydney Thunder | – |
How Does The BBL Draft Work?
The BBL draft is a system where teams pick overseas players for their squads. Each team must choose at least two overseas players through the draft.
The draft has four rounds with different price bands – Platinum (highest paid), Gold, Silver, and Bronze (lowest paid).
Teams pick in order based on their previous season’s performance, with the worst team getting first pick. Only three overseas players can play in each match.
Who Are The Pre-Signed Players In BBL?
Before the draft started, teams could sign one overseas player directly. This gave teams more control over their squad planning. Here are the pre-signed players for each BBL team:
| Team | Pre-Signed Player | Country |
|---|---|---|
| Adelaide Strikers | Jamie Overton | England |
| Brisbane Heat | Colin Munro | New Zealand |
| Hobart Hurricanes | Chris Jordan | England |
| Melbourne Renegades | Tim Seifert | New Zealand |
| Melbourne Stars | Tom Curran | England |
| Perth Scorchers | Finn Allen | New Zealand |
| Sydney Sixers | Babar Azam | Pakistan |
| Sydney Thunder | Sam Billings | England |
BBL 2025-26 Full Squads After Draft
After the draft ended, here’s how each team’s complete squad looked:
1. Adelaide Strikers
Overseas Players: Jamie Overton, Luke Wood, Hassan Ali
Local Players: Cameron Boyce, Jordan Buckingham, Alex Carey, Thomas Kelly, Harry Nielsen, Lloyd Pope, Alex Ross, Jason Sangha, Matt Short, Henry Thornton
2. Brisbane Heat
Overseas Players: Colin Munro, Shaheen Afridi, Tom Alsop
Local Players: Xavier Bartlett, Max Bryant, Lachlan Hearne, Spencer Johnson, Usman Khawaja, Matt Kuhnemann, Nathan McSweeney, Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Matthew Renshaw, Callum Vidler, Hugh Weibgen, Jack Wildermuth
3. Hobart Hurricanes
Overseas Players: Chris Jordan, Rishad Hossain, Rehan Ahmed
Local Players: Iain Carlisle, Nikhil Chaudhary, Nathan Ellis, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Mitch Owen, Matthew Wade, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster, Mac Wright
4. Melbourne Renegades
Overseas Players: Tim Seifert, Mohammad Rizwan, Hassan Khan
Local Players: Jason Behrendorff, Josh Brown, Harry Dixon, Brendan Doggett, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Caleb Jewell, Nathan Lyon, Fergus O’Neill, Tom Rogers, Will Sutherland, Adam Zampa
5. Melbourne Stars
Overseas Players: Tom Curran, Haris Rauf, Joe Clarke
Local Players: Scott Boland, Hilton Cartwright, Liam Hatcher, Glenn Maxwell, Hamish McKenzie, Tom Rogers, Peter Siddle, Mark Steketee, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson
6. Perth Scorchers
Overseas Players: Finn Allen, Laurie Evans, David Payne
Local Players: Ashton Agar, Mahli Beardman, Cooper Connolly, Sam Fanning, Aaron Hardie, Nick Hobson, Josh Inglis, Bryce Jackson, Matt Kelly, Mitchell Marsh, Lance Morris, Joel Paris, Jhye Richardson, Ashton Turner
7. Sydney Sixers
Overseas Players: Babar Azam, Sam Curran, Jafer Chohan
Local Players: Sean Abbott, Joel Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques, Todd Murphy, Mitch Perry, Josh Philippe, Jordan Silk, Steven Smith
8. Sydney Thunder
Overseas Players: Sam Billings, Lockie Ferguson, Shadab Khan
Local Players: Tom Andrews, Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Ollie Davies, Matthew Gilkes, Chris Green, Sam Konstas, Nathan McAndrew, Daniel Sams, Tanveer Sangha, David Warner
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Conclusion: 16 Players Were Picked From The BBL Draft
The BBL draft showed that smart planning helps teams build better squads. Teams that mixed big star signings with cheaper, good players ended up with the strongest line-ups.
This year’s draft proved that England and Pakistan have the most wanted T20 players in the world. With six English players and four Pakistani stars joining different teams, these countries clearly produce the best short-format cricket talent available today.
The real test starts when these new signings play their first games in Australia. Teams like the Sydney Sixers with Babar Azam and the Melbourne Renegades with Mohammad Rizwan look ready to challenge for the title, and fans can expect some amazing cricket matches ahead.
FAQs
Each team can have up to four overseas players in its squad, but only three can play in each match.
There are four bands – Platinum ($360,000-$420,000), Gold ($300,000), Silver ($200,000), and Bronze (up to $100,000).
Teams can sign replacement players after the draft, but they must come from the nominated player list.
The draft order is based on the previous season’s results, with the worst-performing team getting the first pick.
The draft typically takes place in June to give teams more time to plan their squads before the season starts.
