Vettori and fellow New Zealand veteran James Franklin have joined a selection draft into the new Caribbean Premier League. Six international players (Ross Taylor, Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Muttiah Muralitharan, Mohammad Hafeez and Herschelle Gibbs) have signed, leaving 18 other places available.
However, only 18 players are on the draft, meaning each of the six franchises (Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago) will bid for three players each.
The tournament will run from July 29 to August 26 and features group round-robin and knockout stages. Four players in each franchise must be under the age of 23 as part of a development component.
The tournament is seeking an atmosphere described to the Herald on Sunday as "mixing Wellington sevens with the Rio Carnival".
However, there is a slight itinerary clash. Sri Lanka Cricket has asked the West Indies Cricket Board to re-schedule their dates to avoid the Sri Lanka Premier League which starts on August 10. SLC cannot postpone their tournament because the Champions League, which will feature SLPL winners in the qualifying stage, begins in mid-September.
Regardless of logistics, a number of New Zealand internationals and fringe players have put their names forward for SLPL contracts likely to be worth $36,000-$61,000.
Eighty international players are in the draft with 25-30 players to be picked.
The services of Jacob Oram, Kyle Mills, Doug Bracewell, Mitchell McClenaghan, Grant Elliott, Colin Munro, Colin de Grandhomme, Roneel Hira, Adam Milne, Jimmy Neesham and Nick Beard will be auctioned.
- Andrew Alderson
