Australia's Beth Mooney is going to play for the Trent Rockets in The Women's Hundred. (AAP: Simon Sturzaker)
In short:
Australian cricketer Beth Mooney has been sold at auction for a joint-record fee for The Women's Hundred competition.
Mooney is the WBBL's top run scorer and will play for the Trent Rockets in The Hundred.
What's next?
An auction for the men's competition will be held on Thursday.
Australia's evergreen run machine Beth Mooney has cashed in on her enduring excellence, scooping a joint-record payday of 210,000 pounds ($395,000) in the auction for The Women's Hundred.
The 32-year-old wicketkeeper-batter was the subject of a feverish bidding war between Trent Rockets and Manchester Super Giants before the Nottingham-based Rockets won the signature of the BBL's top-scorer for the month-long tournament in July and August.
After Britain's historic first-ever major players' auction for any sports event on Wednesday, local time, Mooney will enter the tournament as the joint-highest earner alongside New Zealand all-rounder Sophie Devine, who Welsh Fire also bought for 210,000 pounds.
Mooney was in such demand that she went for nearly five times more than Australia's captain, Sophie Molineux, who looked like a bargain for the Southampton-based Southern Brave at 47,500 pounds.
Other Aussie all-rounders fared better than the national skipper, with Jess Jonassen — who stepped down as captain of Brisbane Heat and Queensland Fire this week — snapped up by Sunrisers Leeds for 110,000 pounds, while Nicola Carey went to MI London for 95,000 pounds.
All those players have benefited from India's vast investment in the competition, bringing fresh riches to The Hundred. Mooney's jackpot is more than three times higher than the previous top wage of 65,000 pounds.
All those snapped up in the auction in central London on Wednesday joined big-name Aussies who had already been pre-signed, including Ellyse Perry, who will captain Birmingham Phoenix, and Meg Lanning, who will lead the Super Giants.
Every one of the sides features at least one Australian, while three have a triple-powered contingent, including defending champs Northern Superchargers, which have been rebranded at Headingley as the Sunrisers, with Annabel Sutherland, Phoebe Litchfield and Jonassen all six-figure signings.
The auction for the men's Hundred will follow on Thursday in London.
Australians in The Women's Hundred 2026
Birmingham Phoenix — Ellyse Perry 100,000 pounds ($187,436), Alana King* 37,500 pounds ($70,000), Lucy Hamilton 35,000 pounds ($65,000)
London Spirit — Grace Harris 70,000 pounds ($131,000)
Manchester Super Giants — Meg Lanning 95,000 pounds ($178,000), Maitlan Brown* 40,000 pounds ($75,000)
MI London — Nicola Carey* 95,000 pounds ($178,000)
Southern Brave — Sophie Molineux* 47,500 pounds ($89,000)