Erin Burns and Abtaha Maqsood return to Birmingham Phoenix

The first signings of the open market stage in The Hundred women’s competition have been confirmed with Erin Burns, Abtaha Maqsood and Sterre Kalis heading back to Edgbaston.

Burns, a World Cup winner with Australia, returns to Phoenix having played in the first year of the competition, while 23-year-old Maqsood will play her third consecutive season in Birmingham. They’re joined by Chloe Brewer.

Across the eight teams, 26 signings have been announced with six stars of England Women’s U19 World Cup team among the list, as well as WPL break-out star Tara Norris and two-time finalist Georgia Adams.

Through the retention window and The Hundred Draft, powered by Sage, held in March, each team signed eight players, leaving seven slots to fill in the Open Market Stage.

The final 30 signings in the women’s competition, including the last three members of the Birmingham Phoenix squad, will be confirmed alongside The Vitality Wildcard picks in the men’s competition, due to be announced 6 July/7 July.

Birmingham Phoenix: Abtaha Maqsood, Erin Burns, Chloe Brewer, Sterre Kalis

London Spirit: Grace Scrivens, Tara Norris, Niamh Holland

Manchester Originals: Liberty Heap, Phoebe Graham, Fi Morris

Northern Superchargers: Marie Kelly, Aylish Cranstone, Phoebe Franklin

Oval Invincibles: Eva Gray, Ryana MacDonald-Gay, Kira Chathli

Southern Brave: Georgia Adams, Rhianna Southby, Danielle Gregory

Trent Rockets: Josie Groves, Emma Jones, Naomi Dattani, Alexa Stonehouse

Welsh Fire: Alex Griffiths, Claire Nicholas, Sarah Bryce

Birmingham Phoenix will travel to Headingley on Thursday 3 August for their first game of the competition, two days after a double-header at Trent Bridge between Southern Brave and Trent Rockets kicks off the third year of The Hundred – the first of 34 matchdays that promise high-octane men’s and women’s sporting action, live music, and a host of family-friendly entertainment.

More than half a million people attended games during The Hundred’s second year in 2022, including a record-breaking 271,000 watching live women’s fixtures across the competition and more families buying tickets than in 2021.

Tickets are selling fast and are available here. Tickets this year remain great value in line with 2022 pricing, with prices set at £5 for juniors aged 6-15, free for children five and under, and adults starting from £10.   

Abtaha Maqsood said: “I’m really glad to be back at Edgbaston as part of this Birmingham Phoenix squad and to once again be a part of The Hundred. It’s such a brilliant competition to take part in, the standard of cricket is really high and we get great support from big crowds. I loved being at Birmingham Phoenix and it’s nice to be back, hopefully this year we can go all the way.”

Over 14.1 million people tuned in to watch The Hundred action in 2022 and games will again be broadcast 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, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube.

To view all the players selected to play in The Hundred, please visit this link.

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.