Hundred to scrap draft for IPL-style auction as new owners flex influence

London, 28 August 2025:

The Hundred will abandon its player draft from next season, replacing it with an IPL-style open auction under a system shaped by its new franchise owners, according to the Guardian.

The Guardian reported that following talks among recently installed investors, franchises have agreed to adopt a hybrid model similar to the Indian Premier League. Teams will be able to sign players on multiyear contracts, negotiated directly with individuals, while the bulk of squads will still be filled through an open auction.

The change will be a central item when the Hundred’s new board meets for the first time Monday.

Formal approval is expected in October, with the first auction scheduled for February.

The draft had been in place since the competition’s delayed launch in 2021. Despite tweaks (including increased salary bands, retention slots and one direct overseas signing per side) the system has remained largely unchanged. But new owners, who paid about £520 million for stakes ranging from 49% to full control of the eight franchises, are pushing for greater player movement, bigger budgets and marquee international recruits.

Next season’s salary caps will rise from £1.2 million to an as-yet undisclosed figure in the men’s competition, and from £429,000 in the women’s. Franchises will not be required to spend the maximum but will face a “salary collar” to ensure minimum investment.

The overhaul is expected to spur the biggest wave of player transfers since the competition began, while giving cricketers more freedom in contract negotiations. Organisers also hope the increase in wages will position the Hundred as the world’s second-most lucrative short-form league after the IPL, and entice stars who have opted for Major League Cricket in the United States.

A shift from the Hundred’s unique format to Twenty20 rules is also on the agenda for next week’s board meeting, where franchises now hold the balance of power with ECB representatives.

Meanwhile, Ravichandran Ashwin’s retirement from the IPL has raised the prospect of him becoming the first Indian to appear in the Hundred, a move permitted by the BCCI for retired players.