Beth Mooney, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Sophie Molineux signed by Manchester Originals in The Hundred Draft, powered by Sage

• Manchester Originals men’s and women’s teams sign eight players on busy night at The Shard 
• First Emirates Old Trafford double-header to be played on Thursday 25 July against Welsh Fire
• For more information and to sign up for priority ticket access, visit thehundred.com   

Beth Mooney, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Sophie Molineux were the big players of the night to join Manchester Originals at The Hundred Draft, powered by Sage. 

In the women’s competition, Beth Mooney was chosen with the Originals’ first pick – joining Sophie Ecclestone and Laura Wolvaardt in Manchester – while Fazalhaq Farooqi and Sikandar Raza link up with Simon Katich’s men’s team, led by England Men's white-ball captain Jos Buttler. 

Lauren Filer, Eve Jones, Phoebe Graham and Josh Hull have also signed for Manchester Originals. 

Elsewhere in The Hundred Draft, Kieron Pollard went to Southern Brave, Meg Lanning to London Spirit and Ash Gardner to Trent Rockets.

England players Dawid Malan, Amy Jones, Tom Banton, Lauren Filer and Ollie Pope were also on the move, as well as international superstars Andre Russell, Shaheen Afridi, Chamari Athapaththu and Nicholas Pooran. 

Stephen Parry, Manchester Originals Women's Head Coach, said: "I'm delighted with our picks in The Hundred Draft. With the progress we made last year, and the addition of world class players like Beth Mooney and Sophie Molineux, we're in great shape to compete with the best sides in The Hundred this summer. I can't wait to get going in July in front of a full house at Emirates Old Trafford."

The opening game of The Hundred’s fourth year, sees Birmingham Phoenix travel to The Kia Oval on Tuesday 23 July to face Oval Invincibles – the first of 68 games that promise world class men’s and women’s sporting action, live music, and a host of family-friendly entertainment.     

Manchester Originals’ picks in The Hundred Draft 

Women’s: Beth Mooney, Sophie Molineux, Lauren Filer, Eve Jones, Phoebe Graham

Men’s: Sikandar Raza, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Josh Hull

A record 580,000 fans were in attendance across The Hundred last season, including over 300,000 in the women’s competition. The Hundred’s blend of high-quality sport and entertainment saw 41% of all tickets sold to families, 23% to juniors and 30% to women.    

There is currently an exclusive window open to buy tickets for fans who have previously attended The Hundred, until March 27.   

There will be a priority window open from 9-23 April for all fans who sign up in advance at thehundred.com. The general sale period begins from 25 April.  

Tickets are once again great value, with prices set at £5 for juniors aged 3-15 (free for under 3s) and adults starting from £11.    

All games will again be live on Sky Sports and BBC broadcast and digital channels throughout the competition.    

To stay up to date with the latest news, buy tickets or to sign up for priority access, visit thehundred.com or follow The Hundred, and the eight teams, on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.    

ENDS   

Notes to Editors   

About The Hundred:    

The Hundred is an action-packed, unmissable cricket competition that fuses world-class cricket with blockbuster entertainment.    

Combining a short, fast format of cricket, with each game lasting less than three hours, and incredible entertainment beyond the sport, The Hundred is making cricket more accessible and reaching a broader audience. It’s simple: 100 balls per team, most runs wins, so every ball counts.    

The Hundred features eight teams from seven cities, with men’s and women’s competitions taking place side by side:  Welsh Fire (Cardiff), Southern Brave (Southampton), Northern Superchargers (Leeds), London Spirit, Trent Rockets (Nottingham), Oval Invincibles (London), Manchester Originals and Birmingham Phoenix. Each teams features some of the best international and domestic cricketers from around the world, including England Men’s & Women’s World Cup winners.    

About The Hundred Draft powered by Sage:    

More information about all the moves from the The Hundred Draft powered by Sage is available here.   

About The Hundred fixtures:    

The Hundred fixtures are available here.