Kelly, Cranstone and Franklin heading to Northern Superchargers

The first signings of the open market stage in The Hundred women’s competition have been confirmed with Marie Kelly, Aylish Cranstone and Phoebe Franklin three new faces all heading to Northern Superchargers.

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 Australian all-rounder Erin Burns, WPL break-out star Tara Norris and Scottish leg-spinner Abtaha Maqsood.

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 four members of the Superchargers squad, will be confirmed alongside The Vitality Wildcard picks in the men’s competition, due to be announced 6 July/7 July.

Northern Superchargers: Marie Kelly, Aylish Cranstone, Phoebe Franklin

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

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

Northern Superchargers will play host to Birmingham Phoenix on Thursday 3 August, two days after a double-header at Trent Bridge on Tuesday 1 August 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.   

Marie Kelly said: “I’m so excited to be joining Northern Superchargers. You look at some of the players we secured in The Draft and I think we’ve got the makings of a really competitive group. Headingley is always a brilliant ground to play at and I know our supporters will be doing everything they can to cheer us on to success in the third year of the competition.”

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.  

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.