Kieron Pollard and Smriti Mandhana signed by Southern Brave in The Hundred Draft, powered by Sage

• Southern Brave men’s and women’s teams sign nine players on busy night at The Shard 
• First Utilita Bowl double-header to be played on Wednesday 24 July against London Spirit
• For more information and to sign up for priority ticket access, visit thehundred.com   

Kieron Pollard and Smriti Mandhana were the big players of the night to join Southern Brave at The Hundred Draft, powered by Sage. 

In the women’s competition, Smriti Mandhana was chosen with the Brave’s first pick – joining Danni Wyatt and Lauren Bell in Southampton – while Kieron Pollard links up with Stephen Fleming’s men’s team. 

Naomi Dattani, Lauren Cheatle, Kalea Moore, Tilly Corteen-Coleman Akeal Hosein and Danny Briggs have also signed for Southern Brave. 

Elsewhere in The Hundred Draft, Andre Russell and Meg Lanning went to London Spirit and Beth Mooney to Manchester Originals.

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

Southern Brave Women's Head Coach Charlotte Edwards said: “It’s amazing to have Smriti back and we’re really happy with our picks in today’s draft. We’ve had an amazing three years so far in The Hundred and winning the competition last year was really special. We can’t wait to play again in front of our fans and try to defend the trophy this summer.”

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.     

Southern Brave’s picks in The Hundred Draft 

Women’s: Smriti Mandhana, Naomi Dattani, Lauren Cheatle, Kalea Moore, Tilly Corteen-Coleman

Men’s: Kieron Pollard, Laurie Evans, Akeal Hosein, Danny Briggs

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.