The Hundred draft: David Warner signs for London Spirit, James Anderson goes unsold

Former Australia batter David Warner will play in The Hundred for the first time having been signed by London Spirit.

The 38-year-old was initially signed by Southern Brave for the first edition of The Hundred in 2020 before it was cancelled because of Covid-19, but had not been picked up since.

Meanwhile, former England seamer James Anderson went unsold, as did 16-year-old Rocky Flintoff, son of legendary all-rounder Andrew.

Anderson, 42, also entered the auction for this year’s Indian Premier League and did not earn a deal, but he hopes to play all formats for Lancashire this summer.

Other notable signings included England all-rounder Jamie Overton joining Warner at Spirit as he was signed in the highest price bracket of £200,000.

“Any competition with David Warner in it, benefits,” Oval Invincibles captain Sam Billings, who led his side to back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024, told BBC Sport.

“He is box office, it’s very different playing with him to playing against him! But I’ve learned a huge amount from him as a player and in terms of leadership. I can’t speak highly enough of him.”

Warner’s fellow Australian Glenn Maxwell withdrew from the draft, but Southern Brave picked New Zealand all-rounder Michael Bracewell, former England seamer David Willey joined Trent Rockets and Manchester Originals opted for Afghanistan wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad as the other highest-paid players.

Fast bowler Reece Topley also joined Brave to form an exciting pace line-up with fellow England players Jofra Archer, Tymal Mills and Chris Jordan.

Originals selected Black Caps all-rounder Rachin Ravindra, who was player of the tournament at the recent Champions Trophy, while England Test batter Zak Crawley moved from Spirit to Northern Superchargers.

The Hundred starts on 5 August, and there will be a further wildcard draft in May where all teams can sign in-form players from the domestic circuit.