Press release - 2 July 2021 12:21

Player movement in The Hundred

The Hundred has today confirmed a number of new players who will take part in the first season of the 100-ball competition.

Northern Superchargers welcome former Southern African skipper Faf du Plessis, who will replace Aaron Finch as men’s captain, with Laura Wolvaardt coming in for Alyssa Healy in the women’s team.

South Africa will be well represented across the competition with Suné Luus joining Welsh Fire and spinner Imran Tahir signing up at Birmingham Phoenix, while the second ranked women’s IT20 bowler in the world, Shabnim Ismail, will replace Rachael Haynes at Oval Invincibles.

A number of New Zealand stars will also take part in The Hundred including Adam Milne and Finn Allen at Birmingham Phoenix, and Colin Munro at Manchester Originals while Rachel Priest will replace Elyse Villani at Trent Rockets. Allen replaces Kane Williamson who will not play in the inaugural edition of The Hundred due to injury. Glenn Phillips will play for Welsh Fire until Kieron Pollard arrives from West Indies duty.

The new signings replace a number of players who are no longer able to play in the first year of The Hundred amid the challenges of the global Covid-19 pandemic and the rescheduling of various international fixtures.

Meanwhile, the final 12 domestic slots in the women’s squads have been finalised. Amongst the signings are 2020 Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy final hero, Charlotte Taylor at Southern Brave, 17 year old Grace Scrivens at London Spirit, and South East Stars leg-spinner, Danielle Gregory at Oval Invincibles.

In the men’s competition, Yorkshire’s Jordan Thompson will replace Olly Stone at Northern Superchargers after Stone was ruled out for the season with a back injury. Manchester Originals will replace Harry Gurney (retired) with Ollie Robinson while Sam Hain comes in for Wayne Madsen. The final replacement before the Vitality Wildcard Draft is Somerset's Will Smeed in place of the injured Henry Brookes at Birmingham Phoenix.

In addition, Western Storm Head Coach Mark O'Leary will replace Matthew Mott as Head Coach of the Welsh Fire women's squad. Mark will be supported by Lightning Head Coach Rob Taylor and Leeds/Bradford MCCU Head Coach Andrew Lawson as assistant coaches.

Northern Superchargers captain Faf du Plessis said, “It is a real honour to lead Northern Superchargers in their first season. Playing alongside the likes of Ben Stokes, Adil Rashid and Chris Lynn alongside a number of talented young players will be really exciting. I can’t wait to get going in a few weeks time.”

Oval Invincibles star Shabnim Ismail said, “I’m absolutely buzzing to take part in The Hundred. To play in London will be really special, and I know I speak for all my South African teammates when I say we are really looking forward to getting over to the UK and making history in the first year of The Hundred. In particular, I cannot wait to play in the opening fixture of the whole competition on 21 July at The Kia Oval, and maybe bowling the first ever ball in The Hundred.”

Sanjay Patel, The Hundred Managing Director, said, “We know that the ongoing situation with the Covid pandemic and an incredibly busy international schedule has caused significant challenges for a number of international players, but we are delighted with the quality of players who have come in. The Hundred will provide world class entertainment on and off the pitch starting with the opening game, a standalone women’s game, at The Kia Oval on 21 July.”

Combining world-class fast-paced cricket, with top quality live music, The Hundred will bring entertainment to the whole family this summer, with tickets selling fast. For more information on The Hundred or for tickets head to www.thehundred.com.

Full list of overseas Hundred signings

Team	Incoming Player	Outgoing Player
Birmingham Phoenix	Adam Milne	Shaheen Afridi
Birmingham Phoenix	Imran Tahir	Adam Zampa
Birmingham Phoenix	Finn Allen	Kane Williamson (injury)
Birmingham Phoenix	Erin Burns	Ashleigh Gardner
London Spirit	Josh Inglis	Glenn Maxwell
Manchester Originals	Carlos Brathwaite	Shadab Khan
Manchester Originals	Colin Munro	Nicholas Pooran
Northern Superchargers	Faf du Plessis	Aaron Finch
Northern Superchargers	Laura Kimmince	Nicola Carey
Northern Superchargers	Laura Wolvaardt	Alyssa Healy
Oval Invincibles	Shabnim Ismail	Rachael Haynes
Southern Brave	Amanda-Jade Wellington	Amelia Kerr
Trent Rockets	Wahab Riaz	Nathan Coulter-Nile
Trent Rockets	Heather Graham	Annabel Sutherland
Trent Rockets	Sammy-Jo Johnson	Sophie Molineux
Trent Rockets	Rachel Priest	Elyse Villani
Welsh Fire	Jimmy Neesham (first three games)	Jhye Richardson
Welsh Fire	Glenn Phillips (until Pollard arrives)	Kieron Pollard
Welsh Fire	Piepa Cleary	Georgia Wareham
Welsh Fire	Suné Luus	Meg Lanning
Welsh Fire	Georgia Redmayne	Beth Mooney

Domestic Signings

Team	Incoming player	Outgoing Player
Birmingham Phoenix	Will Smeed	Henry Brookes (injury)
London Spirit	Grace Scrivens	N/A
Manchester Originals	Laura Jackson	N/A
Manchester Originals	Ollie Robinson	Harry Gurney (retired)
Manchester Originals	Sam Hain	Wayne Madsen (injury)
Northern Superchargers	Sterre Kalis	N/A
Northern Superchargers	Kalea Moore	N/A
Northern Superchargers	Jordan Thompson	Olly Stone (injury)
Oval Invincibles	Danielle Gregory	N/A
Southern Brave	Ella McCaughan	N/A
Southern Brave	Charlotte Taylor	N/A
Trent Rockets	Ella Claridge	N/A
Trent Rockets	Emily Windsor	N/A
Welsh Fire	Bethan Ellis	N/A
Welsh Fire	Lissy Macleod	N/A
Welsh Fire	Nicole Harvey	N/A

About The Hundred

The Hundred is a brand new sports competition launching this summer (21 July-21 Aug). It fuses blockbuster entertainment with world-class cricket, inviting everyone to fall in love with the game at its intense, electrifying and incredible best.

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

The Hundred will feature eight brand new 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 team will feature some of the best international and domestic cricketers from around the world, including England Men’s & Women’s World Cup winners.

Games will be broadcast live on Sky Sports and BBC throughout the competition – so whether in ground or watching from home – you’ll be right amongst all the action.

You won’t want to miss out on this summer’s sporting entertainment event! Join us for the latest news access to tickets by signing up at thehundred.com.