England’s Test players "could appear in a new Twenty20 competition" when it is launched in '20, according to Nick Hoult of the London TELEGRAPH. The latest briefing document for the new tournament revealed England’s Test players "will be allocated in a separate player draft." The document "also outlines more detail for the proposed main player draft to be held before the tournament" and confirmed in writing the England & Wales Cricket Board’s promise that each of the 18 counties will earn a minimum of £1.3M ($1.6M) a year from the competition, "even though they will not be taking part." The competition will be held in July and August and it had been assumed that England’s Test players "would not be able to take part" due to int'l commitments. But the likes of Joe Root and Ben Stokes will be allocated to new teams in a separate draft from the main player auction "should a window open for them to appear in the new event." In the first player draft of its kind in British sport, 13 players "will be bought by each of the eight teams." The memo anticipates that "only five players per county will be involved in the new competition," meaning more than half of the current 300 professional cricketers in England "will not be picked up." They will instead play for their counties in the 50-over tournament that will run alongside the new competition (TELEGRAPH, 3/10).
