The Hundred 2021: Everything You Need To Know Quickly – Rules, Teams, Expected XIs, Fixtures, Predictions

by Nitesh Mathur | Jul 21, 2021 | Previews and Reviews, The Hundred

The Hundred 2021 is finally upon us after a couple years delay.

Change is life’s only constant. You may love this new idea or might completely detest it. It may disrupt County Cricket as a whole and alienate cricket fans for the sake of ‘new modern audience.’ Increased visibility for women’s cricket will definitely be a big plus although cancellation of the Kia Super League was questionable. George Dobell dissects the Hundred to perfection.

Gone are the days of the calm claps and on to the days of DJ and party-mood in English cricket.

Whatever happens, it will be different. It could be another IPL and change cricket forever or it may be become the template of how not to administer cricket tournaments. No middle ground.

Let us give it a shot and try it out. Here is everything you need to know about the Hundred 2021.

Quick Summary

• Matches: 34 (8 teams, 8 matches each, four home/away, 32 league matches, 1 Knockout (#2 vs #3), 1 Final)
• Editions: Both Women’s & Men’s Tournament held simultaneously
• Teams: Birmingham Phoenix, London Spirit, Manchester Originals, Northern Superchargers, Oval Invincibles, Southern Brave, Trent Rockets, Welsh Fire
• Dates: 21st July-21st August
• Venues: Old Trafford (Manchester), Headingly (Leeds), Edgbaston (Birmingham), Trent Bridge (Nottingham), Sophia Gardens (Cardiff), Lord’s (London), The Oval (London), Rose/Ageas Bowl (Hampshire)
• Broadcasting: SKY Sports, BBC (Free to Air – some matches), YouTube (all women’s games, some men)

The Rules and Jargon

1. Length: 100 balls per innings
2. Toss: Will not be done in the middle of the pitch; it will be on the presentation ‘stage’ where the DJ will be
3. No More ‘Overs’, balls will the unit of measurement
4. 20 balls maximum per bowler
5. A bowler can bowl either 5 or 10 balls consecutively (Change of ends will occur after the 10 balls)
6. 25-ball Powerplay
7. Over-Rate: 65 minutes per innings; penalties will most likely include risking fielders in the inner circle

The Hundred: Teams & Expected Playing XI

Unfortunately, due to the England-India Test series and bio-bubble rules, England’s test players will be involved only for 2 Hundred matches.

*Teams highlighted in their respective jersey colors

Birmingham Phoenix (Men)

• England Internationals: Chris Woakes (C), Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Dom Sibley
• England Domestic: Tom Abell, Daniel Bell-Drummond, Pat Brown, Chris Cooke (WK), Miles Hammond, Tom Helm, Adam Hose, Benny Howell, Dillon Pennington, Will Smeed
• Foreign Recruits: Finn Allen (New Zealand), Imran Tahir (South Africa), Adam Milne (New Zealand)

Coach: Daniel Vettori

Birmingham Phoenix Expected XI:

1. Finn Allen, 2. Dom Sibley, 3. Moeen Ali, 4. Liam Livingstone, 5. Tom Abell, 6. Daniel Bell-Drummond, 7. Chris Cooke (WK), 8. Chris Woakes*, 9. Daniel Bell-Drummond, 10. Adam Milne, 10. Imran Tahir

Birmingham Phoenix (Women)

• England Internationals: Amy Jones (WK), Georgia Elwiss, Kirstie Gordon
• England Domestic: Emily Arlott, Thea Brookes, Gwenan Davies, Ria Fackrell, Phoebe Franklin, Evelyn Jones, Marie Kelly, Issy Wong
• Foreign Recruits: Erin Burns, Katie Mack (Australia), Abtaha Maqsood (Scotland), Shafali Verma (India)

*Withdrawn: Ellyse Perry (Australia)

Coach: Ben Sawyer

Birmingham Phoenix Expected XI:

1. Shafali Verma, 2. Katie Mack, 3. Georgia Elwiss, 4. Amy Jones (WK), 5. Erin Burns, 6. Thea Brookes, Issy Wong, Emily Arlott, Kirstie Gordon, Abtaha Maqsood

London Spirit (Men)

• England Internationals: Zak Crawley (C), Eoin Morgan, Mark Wood, Ravi Bopara, Mason Crane, Joe Denly, Jade Dernbach, Dan Lawrence
• England Domestic: Blake Cullen, Josh Inglis (WK), Luis Reece, Adam Rossington (WK), Chris Wood
• Foreign Recruits: Mohammad Amir (Pakistan), Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan), Roelef van der Merwe (Netherlands)

Coach: Lisa Keightley

London Spirit Expected XI:

1. Zak Crawley, 2. Joe Denly, 3. Dan Lawrence, 4. Eoin Morgan, 5. Ravi Bopara, 6. Mohammad Nabi, 7. Josh Inglis (WK), 8. Roelef van der Merwe, 8. Mark Wood, 9. Jade Dernbach, 10. Mohammad Amir, 11. Mason Crane

London Spirit (Women)

• England Internationals: Heather Knight (C), Tammy Beaumont (WK), Freya Davies, Susie Rowe, Grace Scrivens
• England Domestic: Amara Carr, Aylish Cranstone, Naomi Dattani, Charlotte Dean, Danielle Gibson, Alice Monaghan, Sophie Munro
• Foreign Recruits: Deandra Dottin (West Indies), Deepti Sharma (India), Chloe Tyron (South Africa)

Coach: Shane Warne

London Spirit Expected XI:

1. Tammy Beaumont, 2. Heather Knight, 3. Deandre Dottin, 4. Susie Rowe, 5. Deepti Sharma, 6. Chloe Tyron, 7. Naomi Dattani, 8. Charlie Dean, 9. Freya Davies, 10. Grace Scrivens, 11. Sophie Munro

Manchester Originals (Men)

• England Internationals: Jos Buttler (C), Steven Finn, Matt Parkinson, Ollie Robinson, Phil Salt
• England Domestic: Joe Clarke, Jamie Overton, Richard Gleeson, Sam Hain, Tom Hartley, Tom Lammonby
• Foreign Recruits: Colin Ackermann, Fred Klaasen (Netherlands – domestic), Lockie Ferguson, Colin Munro (New Zealand), Carlos Brathwaite (West Indies)

Coach: Simon Katich

Manchester Originals Expected XI:

1. Jos Buttler (C/WK), 2. Colin Munro, 3. Phil Salt, 4. Joe Clarke, 5. Sam Hain, 6. Carlos Brathwaite, 7. Ollie Robinson, 8. Matt Parkinson, 9. Jamie Overton, 10. Lockie Ferguson, 11. Steven Finn

Manchester Originals (Women)

• England Internationals: Kate Cross, Sophie Ecclestone, Alex Hartley
• England Domestic: Georgie Boyce, Natalie Brown, Danielle Collins, Alice Dyson, Cordelia Griffith, Laura Jackson, Hannah Jones, Emma Lamb, Eleanor Threlkeld (WK)
• Foreign Recruits: Mignon du Preez (South Africa), Harmanpreet Kaur (India), Lizelle Lee (South Africa)

Coach: Paul Shaw

Manchester Originals Expected XI:

1. Lizelle Lee, 2. Emma Lamb, 3. Georgia Boyce, 4. Harmanpreet Kaur, 5. Mignon du Preez, 6. Sophie Ecclestone, 7. Kate Cross (C), 8. Cordelia Griffith, 9. Ellie Threlkeld (WK), 10. Laura Jackson, 11. Alex Hartley

Oval Invincibles (Men)

• England Internationals: Sam Curran (C), Tom Curran, Jason Roy, Sam Billings (WK), Rory Burns, Saqib Mahmood, Reece Topley
• England Domestic: Alex Blake, Jordan Blake, Jordan Cox, Laurie Evans, Brandon Glover, Will Jacks, Nathan Sowter
• Foreign Recruits: Colin Ingram (South Africa), Sandeep Lamichhane (Nepal), Sunil Narine (West Indies)

Coach: Tom Moody

Oval Invincibles Expected XI:

1. Colin Ingram, 2. Jason Roy, 3. Rory Burns, 4. Jordan Cox, 5. Sunil Narine, 6. Sam Billings, 8. Sam Curran (C), 9. Tom Curran, 10. Saqib Mahmood, 11. Reece Topley

Oval Invincibles (Women)

• England Internationals: Sarah Bryce (WK), Tash Farrant, Mady Villiers, Fan Wilson
• England Domestic: Georgia Adams, Megan Belt, Alice Capsey, Joanne Gardner, Grace Gibbs, Eva Gray, Danielle Gregory
• Foreign Recruits: Shabnim Ismail, Marizanne Kapp, Dane van Niekerk (South Africa)

Coach: Lydia Greenway

Oval Invincibles Expected XI:

1. Georgia Adams, 2. Alice Capsey, 3. Fran Wilson, 4. Dane van Niekerk (C), 5. Marizanne Kapp, 6. Sarah Bryce (WK), 7. Tash Farrant, 8. Mady Villiers, 9. Grace Gibbs, 10. Shabnim Ismail, 11. Dani Gregory

Northern Superchargers (Men)

• England Internationals: Ben Stokes (C), Adil Rashid, David Wiley, Brydon Carse, Adam Lyth, John Simpson (WK)
• England Domestic: Harry Brook, Matthew Fisher, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Matty Potts, Ben Raine, Jordan Thompson
• Foreign Recruits: Faf du Plessis (South Africa), Chris Lynn (Australia), Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Afghanistan)

Coach: Darren Lehmann

Northern Superchargers Expected XI:

1. Faf du Plessis, 2. Chris Lynn, 3. Ben Stokes (C), 4. Adam Lyth, 5. Tom Kohler-Cadmore, 6. John Simpson (WK), 7. Brydon Carse, 8. David Wiley, 9. Adil Rashid, 10. Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 11. Matty Potts

Northern Superchargers (Women)

• England Internationals: Lauren Winfield-Hill, Alice Davidson-Richards, Beth Langston, Linsey Smith
• England Domestic: Hollie Armitage, Ami Campbell, Helen Fenby, Phoebe Graham, Katie Levick, Kalea Moore, Bess Heath (WK)
• Foreign Recruits: Laura Kimmince (Australia), Sterre Kalis (Netherlands), Jemimah Rodrigues (India), Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa)

Coach: Danielle Hazell

Northern Superchargers Expected XI:

1. Lauren Winfield-Hill, 2. Laura Wolvaardt, 3. Jemimah Rodrigues, 4. Laura Kimmince, 5. Alice Davidson-Richards, 6. Beth Langston, 7. Bess Heath (WK), 8. Phoebe Graham, 9. Linsey Smith, 10. Katie Levick, 11. Helen Fanby

Southern Brave (Men)

• England Internationals: Jofra Archer (C), James Vince, Danny Briggs, Liam Dawson, Chris Jordan, Tymal Mills, Craig Overton
• England Domestic: Alex Davies (WK), George Garton, Jake Lintott, Max Waller, Ross Whitely
• Foreign Recruits Devon Conway (New Zealand), Quinton de Kock (WK), Delray Rawlins (Bermuda – domestic)

*Withdrawn: Andre Russell (West Indies)

Coach: Mahela Jayawardene

Southern Brave Expected XI:

1. Devon Conway, 2. Quinton de Kock (C), 3. James Vince, 4. Alex Davies (WK), 5. , 6. George Garton, 7. Jofra Archer (C), 9. Liam Dawson, 10. Chris Jordan, 11. Tymal Mills

Southern Brave (Women)

• England Internationals: Sophia Dunkley, Sonia Odedra, Anya Shrubsole, Danni Wyatt
• England Domestic: Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Ella McCaughan, Fi Morris, Tara Norris, Carla Rudd (WK), Paige Scholfield, Charlotte Taylor
• Foreign Recruits: Smriti Mandhana (India), Stafanie Taylor (West Indies), Amanda-Jade Wellington (Australia)

Coach: Charlotte Edwards

Southern Brave Expected XI:

1. Smriti Mandhana, 2. Danni Wyatt, 3. Stefanie Taylor, 4. Sophia Dunkley, 5. Maia Bouchier, 6. Paige Scholfield, 7. Carla Rudd (WK), 8. Amanda-Jade Wellington, 9. Anya Shrubsole, 10. Sonia Odedra, 11. Lauren Bell

Trent Rockets (Men)

• England Internationals: Joe Root (C), Alex Hales, Lewis Gregory, Dawid Malan, Samit Patel, Luke Wright
• England Domestic: Matthew Carter, Sam Cook, Ben Cox (WK), Tom Moores (WK), Steven Mullaney, Luke Wood
• Foreign Recruits: Rashid Khan (Afghanistan), D’Arcy Short (Australia), Timm van der Gugten (Netherlands – domestic), Wahab Riaz (Pakistan), Marchant de Lange (South Africa)

Coach: Andy Flower

I am looking forward to

Trent Rockets Expected XI:

1. D’Arcy Short, 2. Alex Hales, 3. Joe Root, 4. Dawid Malan, 5. Luke Wright, 6. Samit Patel, 7. Ben Cox (WK), 8. Timm van der Gugten, 9. Rashid Khan, 10. Lewis Gregory, 11. Wahab Riaz

Trent Rockets (Women)

• England Internationals: Katherine Brunt, Kathryn Bryce, Sarah Glenn, Nat Sciver
• England Domestic: Ella Claridge, Abigail Freeborn, Teresa Graves, Nancy Harman, Lucy Higham, Alicia Presland, Emily Windsor
• Foreign Recruits: Heather Graham, Sammy-Jo Johnson (Australia), Michaele Kirk (South Africa – domestic), Rachel Priest (WK – New Zealand)

Coach: Salliann Briggs

I am looking forward to

Trent Rockets Expected XI:

1. Kathryn Bryce, 2. Heather Graham, 3. Nat Sciver (C), 4. Rachiel Priest (WK), 5. Emily Windsor, 6. Sammy Jo-Johnson, 8. Katherine Brunt, 9. Sarah Glenn, 10. Kathryn Bryce, 11. Lucy Higham

Welsh Fire (Men)

• England Internationals: Ollie Pope (C), Jonny Bairstow (WK), Liam Plunkett, Jake Ball, Tom Banton, Ben Duckett
• England Domestic: Josh Cobb, Ian Cockbain, Matt Critchley, Ryan Higgins, David Lloyd, David Payne
• Foreign Recruits: Jacobus Leus du Plooy (South Africa – domestic), James Neesham (New Zealand), Glenn Phillips (WK), Qais Ahmad (Afghanistan)
• Withdrawn: Kieron Pollard

Coach: Gary Kirsten

Welsh Fire Expected XI:

1. Jonny Bairstow (WK), 2. Tom Banton, 3. Ben Duckett, 4. Ollie Pope (C), 5. Glenn Phillips, 6. James Neesham, 8. Qais Ahmed, 9. Liam Plunkett, 10. Jake Ball, 11. David Payne

Welsh Fire (Women)

• England Internationals: Sarah Taylor (WK), Katie George, Bryony Smith
• England Domestic: Sophie Luff, Bethan Ellis, Georgia Hennessy, Alice Macleod, Nat Wraith (WK), Alex Griffiths, Amy Gordon, Nicole Harvey, Lauren Flier
• Foreign Recruits: Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Piepa Cleary, Georgia Redmayne (WK – Australia)

Coach: Mark O’Leary

Welsh Fire Expected XI:

1. Georgia Redmayne, 2. Hayley Matthews, 3. Sophie Luff, 4. Bethan Ellis, 5. Sarah Taylor (WK), 6. Georgia Hennessy, 7. Piepa Cleary, 9. Alice Macleod, 10. Alex Griffiths, 11. Nicole Harvey

The Hundred 2021 Prediction League

Before you get started, you have to do a quick registration (takes 30 seconds).

1. Register for predictions here https://brokencricketdreams.com/register/
2. After logging in, navigate to the menu and find The Hundred Prediction Sheet. https://brokencricketdreams.com/pool/

At this point, you should see something like this (if you are on Desktop):

Fixtures & Schedule

You can find the Hundred 2021 fixtures (UTC time zone) here.

Key Match Ups To Watch Out For

1. Women’s Cricket – This is the boost women’s cricket needs. Yes, the financial pay is not nearly equal to the men’s edition, but at least women’s cricket is made a priority. This could be the template for other leagues to follow (hint, hint, nudge, nudge the IPL) to have simultaneous men/women’s tournament and have foreign talent on show. With Free-to-air matches and all matches free on YouTube, I am hoping women’s cricket expands to the next level.
2. Joe Root & Dawid Malan – Malan, the #1 ranked T20I batter has a question mark on his place in the XI, especially after youngsters like Liam Livingstone standing up. Joe Root, England’s catalyst in the 2016 T20 World Cup campaign, is back into contention. Both will represent the Trent Rockets. Is this a direct audition for the World Cup spot?
3. Sarah Taylor & Liam Plunkett – World’s best keeper and England’s most important bowler in the 2019 Cricket World Cup. Retired and left behind, they are both back.
4. English Team Depth – The quickly put together “second-string” England emerged on the top against Pakistan and currently India’s new look squad is bossing Sri Lanka around. Will talents like Tom Banton and Phil Salt shine and make England’s case even stronger?

The Hundred 2021 Predictions

Finally here are my predictions.

My prediction for the team to lift the #Hundred 2021 trophy for both men & women trophy with… London Spirits with the Top 3 of Trent Rockets & Southern Brave (men) and Northern Superchargers & Southern Brave (women)

• Most Runs: Liam Livingstone (M), Tammy Beaumont (W)
• Most Wickets: Rashid Khan (M), Sophie Ecclestone (W)
• Player of the Tournament: Sam Curran (M), Shafali Verma (W)
• Emerging Player: Phil Salt (M), Sophia Dunkley (W)
• Surprise Package: London Spirit (M), London Spirit (M)
• Broken Cricket Dream: Will County Cricket die? Will the ardent cricket fans leave for the sake of attracting new audience?

Here were my Predictions for The Hundred 2021. What did you think? What are YOUR predictions? Comment Below!

Copyright 7/21/2021 @NiteshMathur – Broken Cricket Dreams, bcd@brokencricketdreams.com

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