The Hundred is finally going to begin later this year. According to ANI, The Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) has granted No Objection Certificates (NOC’s) to four women’s team players so that they could feature in the new tournament called The Hundred.
The Hundred is a professional franchise tournament which involves eight men’s teams and eight women’s team. It is administered by England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It was supposed to begin last year but it got delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
BCCI has sent the NOC’s to the ECB and they are waiting for an official announcement which is likely to be made soon. This also states that the stay of the Indian women’s team will get extended in the UK as the team is already set to play one Test, three ODI’s, and three T20’s in June-July this year. Australian batsman Ellyse Perry is also set to feature in The Hundred for Birmingham Phoenix.
The Hundred is a unique format of cricket where 100 balls per innings will be provided to each team. It is an ambitious project that is set to go under the floor in June. For the first time in franchise cricket, men’s and women’s tournaments will go ahead at the same time. There will one men’s game and one women’s game on each day of the tournament. Considering the amount of effort ECB has put in marketing this unique format, women’s cricket is going to get more exposure. Indian players getting the opportunity to play in this tournament will enhance their skill and also help the Indian team.
It’s also reported that BCCI might allow U-23 players, who are not part of the Indian team to take part in The Hundred. A report from a British outlet also insisted that franchises in The Hundred are ready to give stakes to IPL franchise owners to get star Indian players in the tournament. There has also been the talk of broadcast revenue share with BCCI for subcontinent to get players such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to the tournament. With IPL 2021 suspended, cricket followers will be looking forward to The Hundred later this summer.