Former India pacer Siddarth Kaul has registered himself for the Big Bash League (BBL) draft for the upcoming season. Kaul is the only Indian to register for men's BBL whereas as many as 15 women cricketers have registered for the WBBL draft.
Kaul has played three ODIS and as many T20Is for India. He remained wicketless in ODIs and claimed four wickets in T20Is. He made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) in the 2013 edition. In 2017, he became a part of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) where he played till the 2021 season. In IPL 2022, he made his first and last appearance for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Overall, he has 58 wickets from 55 IPL games at an average of 29.98.
Kaul's last appearance in competitive cricket was in Ranji Trophy 2024-25 where he remained wicketless in the clash between Haryana and Punjab. He announced his retirement from Indian cricket in November 2024. In his T20 career, Kaul has 182 wickets from 145 games at an average of 22.04, including a five-wicket haul.
If Kaul gets picked, he will become second Indian player to play in the BBL. India's Under-19 World Cup 2012-winning captain Unmukt Chand has represented Melbourne Renegades. However, Chand never played for India's senior side.
Anderson wants to play another T20 League
In addition to Kaul, a high-profile name in the drafts is England pacer James Anderson. He has been bowling well in the ongoing T20 Blast on his T20 return for Lancashire. The soon-to-be 43-year-old has taken 10 wickets for Lancashire in the ongoing tournament, including three three-fers. Last year, he registered for the IPL mega auction but did not get picked.
List of Indians in WBBL draft
Meanwhile, as many as 15 Indian players have registered for the WBBL draft including RCB's Kanika Ahuja who made her T20I debut earlier this year. Niki PRasad, Uma Chetry, Kashvee Gautam, Priya Mishra, S Meghana, Arundhati Reddy, Pratika Rawal have registered as well. They expect to make their debut in the league. Jemimah Rodrigues, Shikha Pandey, Radha Yadav and Yastika Bhatia have already made their WBBL appearances.