Zimbabwe cricket team stars Blessing Muzarabani, Ryan Burl, Wessley Madhevere, Donald Tiripano and Sikandar Raza are among the 284 overseas stars to have registered for The Hundred Draft ahead of the competition’s second season in the United Kingdom.
The Hundred is a professional franchise 100-ball cricket tournament involving eight men’s and eight women’s teams located in major cities across England and Wales.
The tournament is run by the England and Wales Cricket Board and took place for the first time in July and August 2021.
The draft for this year’s edition of The Hundred will take place behind closed doors on Monday April 5 with the outcome set to be revealed a day later.
The Zimbabwe quartet of Madhevere, Raza, Muzarabani and Burl are the only Zimbabwe national team players to have signalled their intent to feature in the tournament and will enter the draft with no reserve price.
For Madhevere, The Hundred Draft will be his first opportunity to get a chance to showcase his talent abroad after recently breaking into the senior national team.
The 21-year-old middle order batsman and offspinner is widely regarded as one of the most talented young players to emerge in the country in recent years.
His compatriot Muzarabani recently featured in two editions of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and is now currently gaining some experience at this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) after recently being signed by the Lucknow Super Giants as a net bowler.
The tall fast bowler will fancy his chances of breaking into The Hundred and he will not be in unfamiliar territory in England. He previously had a successful spell at English County side Northamptonshire and that could count in his favour during the draft.
Raza on the other hand has been in top form both on the domestic circuit and most recently in the ongoing Dhaka Premier League in Bangladesh.
The Pakistan-born Zimbabwe star is one of the most well-travelled local cricketers having featured in several franchise competitions around the world.
Burl has also previously featured in several overseas T20 competitions while Tiripano will be seeking his first breakthrough abroad.
Meanwhile Zimbabwe-born players Hilton Cartwright and Colin De Grandhomme, who now play for Australia and New Zealand respectively also feature on the list of aspirants ahead of the competition draft.
The inaugural edition of ‘The Hundred’ was a massive hit among the fans, particularly because of its unique format.
Several high-profile names in the form of David Warner, Babar Azam, Chris Gayle, Andre Russell are a part of the upcoming draft, and will be eyeing lucrative deals. The quartet have a reserve price of £125,000.