Second edition of The Hundred to begin on August 3
The newest format of cricket aka The Hundred is set to be back for the second season. The second edition of The Hundred will kick off on August 3 with the inaugural men's champions' Southern Brave taking on Welsh Fire in the tournament opener. The women's event will be delayed by a week with defending champions Oval Invincibles facing Northern Superchargers on August 11.
Why does it matter?
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) invented The Hundred to attract new audiences. They were also successful in their efforts as over 16 million people watched the competition on television. The organizers also sold over 500,000 plus tickets. It also helped in promoting the women's game as 267,000 people attended their games across the competition, according to ECB.
Delayed start for Women's event
Women's cricket has been included in the 2022 Commonwealth Games (July 28th to August 8th), resulting in the delayed start of the Women's Hundred. It also means they will play fewer group stage games as compared to their male counterpart. Each team in the women's category will play just six Group games while the men's side will play eight.
The Hundred format
After the conclusion of the group stage, the table-toppers will directly qualify for the summit clash. The second and third-placed teams will square off in the Eliminator round on September 2 at the Ageas Bowl. The winner of the Eliminator will then take on the top-ranked team in the final on September 3 at Lord's cricket stadium.
Key dates to chalk down
February 22 is the deadline for the players' retention. The Draft will take place on March 30. The priority ticket window will be opened on March 31. Tickets will be available on general sale on April 20. The competition will kick off on August 3. Women's Hundred will begin on August 11. The final will take place on September 3.
The Hundred managing director Sanjay Patel on the second edition
"The Hundred helped grow the game last year. With more than 500,000 tickets sold and 16 million watching on TV - with half of them being new to cricket - we saw a new audience enjoying the game for the first time," he said. "We can't wait to build on that, bringing world-class cricket and an incredible family day out to fans," he added.
Previous winners
Oval Invincibles won the inaugural women's Hundred by defeating Southern Brave in the final by 48 runs. Southern Brave won the men's Hundred by hammering the Birmingham Phoenix in the final by 32 runs at the iconic Lord's stadium.
Top performers from last season
Liam Livingstone top-scored in the men's category with 348 runs last season. He was followed by Ben Duckett (232) and James Vince (229). Adam Milne, Marchant De Lange, Adil Rashid, and Rashid Khan finished as joint-leading wicket-takers (12 each). Dane van Niekerk (259) and Jemimah Rodrigues (249) were leading run-getter in the women's competition. Natasha Farrant took 18 wickets to finish as leading wicket-taker.
