Kane Williamson has become the latest overseas player to pull out of the Hundred, having pulled out of his £80,000 (US$110,000) contract at Birmingham Phoenix while managing his elbow injury.
New Zealand skipper Williamson has been managing an injury for the past six months, missing the ODI series against Bangladesh, the start of the IPL and the second Test against England with the same problem. He is still in the UK after the World Test Championship final and is expected to join the Edgbaston-based team in a mentoring capacity.
Finn Allen, his compatriot, has been joined by Phoenix as a replacement and will remain in the UK following his stint at Vitality Blast with Lancashire. Allen, who has the highest strike rate of his career in T20 cricket, has scored 215 runs in his eight innings for Lancashire at an average of 30.71 at a strike rate of 138.70.
Shaheen Shah Afridi has also pulled out of his Phoenix contract due to his international commitments with Pakistan, who tour the Caribbean from July 21 to August 21. Their third men's overseas player Adam Zampa is also expected to be dropped as he is part of the Australia squad for limited overs tours of the Caribbean and Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, Lungi Ngidi prepares to join the Welsh Fire. South African pacer Ngidi is likely to be available for five matches after his limited-overs tour of Ireland as a replacement for Jhye Richardson. New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham, who plays for Essex in the Blast, is expected to fill in for the start of the tournament.
With Kieron Pollard expected to miss at least the start of the tournament due to his international commitments as captain of the West Indies in the T20I series against Australia and Pakistan, ESPNcricinfo understands New Zealand batsman Glenn Phillips will be playing for Gloucestershire Used to be. Blast, has been hailed as a potential replacement.
Elsewhere, Pakistan left-arm pacer Wahab Riaz has been roped in by Trent Rockets as a replacement for Australian all-rounder Nathan Coulter-Nile. Riaz has not played any T20 Internationals for Pakistan since December and is available to play the West Indies in the Caribbean after being dropped from his team. He was the second highest wicket-taker in the PSL this season.
Coulter-Nile and Richardson are the latest Australians to pull out, with tours to the Caribbean and Bangladesh a major factor in the mandatory 14-day quarantine period on return and various evacuees. Teams are poised for a comeback in the coming days with the pressure of a packed international schedule and travel difficulties at the time of combination squeezing the availability of the world's top players.
The Hundred's wildcard draft will take place on Friday, with each men's team picking an unsigned home player based on their performance in the Blast so far this season. Jordan Thompson, Sam Hahn and Sam Cooke have all attracted interest.