(Reuters) – Fire Wales has added impressive West Indies batsman Kieron Pollard to his squad while Southern Brave has signed Australian opener David Warner for The Hundred, the England and Wales Cricket Board franchise league starting in July.
Together, the eight men’s teams added 35 players from a pool of more than 500 foreign and English cricketers to their rosters following the draft, from which the ECB released yesterday.
Each team now has one wild card option each to fill their final slots in June.
“I can’t wait to come and play at The Hundred, it’s an exciting new cricket competition and I’m delighted to be part of it,” Pollard, number two, said in a statement.
“… With Jhye (Richardson) joining too, I think this Welsh Fire team has some serious firepower in terms of bowling and line batting, so I think we can put on a real show.”
West Indian batsman Nicholas Pooran was the men’s first choice in the draft and South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada joined the Manchester Originals squad.
Eight other female players from England and eight Australian players were announced for the women’s tournament, including Meg Lanning (Fire Wales), Sophie Molineux (Trent Rockets) and Alyssa Healy (Northern Superchargers).
The women didn’t have a draft, with teams set to continue filling their squads over the coming months.
The ECB has invested heavily in The Hundred, a competition it believes will attract younger audiences to the sport. The games will feature 100 balls per inning with a head change after 10 deliveries.
The launch of the opening edition was postponed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The women’s competition will mark the start of The Hundred with Oval Invincibles meeting the Manchester Originals on July 21, a day before the men’s teams face off.