The Hundred 2020 Dates: From Teams, Venues, Format to Players Participating, All You Need to Know About England's Revolutionary 100-Ball Cricket Tournament

The Hundred is England Cricket Board’s new brainchild and will be played in the 100-ball format. The Hundred cricket tournament will be played from July 17 to August 16, 2020, and will involve eight teams spread across seven cities – with two capital city London getting two teams. The Hundred emerged out of England and Wales Cricket Board’s 24-pointer to grow the sport and make it more attractive both in its presentation and to the younger generation. The Hundred cricket tournament will involve 100 overs per innings with bowlers given the option of bowling five or more consecutive deliveries for one over.

The first edition of The Hundred will be played in 2020 and will involve eight new city-based franchise teams playing in the cricket competition, which will run for a period of five weeks starting from July 2020. The tournament will comprise of 36 days and will run for about 38 days. Bowlers are given an option to change ends either after 5 or 10 deliveries each. Harbhajan Singh Told He Can't Be Part of 'The Hundred' Draft.

A single bowler can bowl 5 or 10 consecutive deliveries but not more than 20 deliveries in a particular game. Reminiscing the format followed in the Indian Premier League (IPL), each bowling team in The Hundred cricket tournament will be given the option to use one two-and-a-half minute of strategic timeout. Here is all you need to know about The Hundred. From teams and players participating in the format of The Hundred cricket tournament and venue details, you can find all related information below. Steve Smith and David Warner Among the Most Expensive Players in ‘The Hundred’ Draft.

What is Exactly The Hundred?

The Hundred is a new cricket tournament in England, which will hit the cricketing world for the first in July 2020. The tournament’s name “The Hundred” is derived from the fact that the game will be played in a 100-ball per inning per format. It was initially derived as a Twenty20 tournament but the cost and energy involved in running another T2O competition persuaded the ECB into shortening the format into a 100-ball per innings game. Thus the name “The Hundred.”

When Will The Hundred Take Place?

The Hundred cricket tournament will be played during the summer school holidays in England. It is an effort to attract more families to the game and will, therefore, take place from July 17, 2020, to August 16.

Format of The Hundred

The Hundred cricket tournament will be played in the hundred balls per innings format. Each team will bowl 100 overs each with bowler getting a maximum of 20 deliveries across each game. A bowler can bowl either 5 or 10 consecutive deliveries but a maximum of 20 deliveries per game. The bowling team will also have to change ends after every 10 deliveries. The opening 25 deliveries of each innings will also be the power play with a maximum of two players allowed outside the 30-yard circle during that period.

The fielding team will also be allowed one strategic time-out of two-and-a-half-minutes each in every game. Eight teams, spreading across seven England cities, will be participating in the tournament and will play a total of 36 games across 38 days. The top three placed team will progress into the knockouts, with the top-placed team qualifying for the final. The second-third ranked team will play in a virtual semi-final clash to decide the other finalist.

Team Names, and Venues

All the 18 first-class counties have agreed to be a part of The Hundred. The names of all eight teams have been announced and have been divided across seven popular cities in England. The teams were announced on October 3, 2019 (Thursday). Each team will have a roster of 15 players each.

Each of the eight teams have already picked up one England player each for their respective teams. Each team will also have to select two local icons, in addition to one each centrally contracted England player. For the Women's tournament, teams will choose two centrally contracted players. Details of the teams, their respective locations and head coaches are:

Will Indian Players and Overseas Player Participate?

Unfortunately, Indian players are obliged to follow BCCI’s (Board of Control for Cricket in India) guidelines of playing in the domestic format rather than World T20 leagues, to be in contention for selection to the national team, and will not be taking part in The Hundred. Other overseas players – from all over the world – excluding AB de Villiers are expected to make themselves available for the 100-ball tournament.

The Two Drafts

Interestingly, the first draft will not be to select players but to select the order in which the players would be picked. The first draw has therefore already taken place with the Trent Rockstars coached by Stephen Fleming set to pick the first player. The team that chooses the first player in the first round, will get the last pick in the second round and so on. Each team have also been given a scheduled time of 100 seconds each to pick a player in each round.

Wildcard Entry

The drafts will the most important for all eight franchise in the first edition of The Hundred. But it will not be the only one where they get to pick players. Each team will also be able to make a wildcard pick after the conclusion of next season's Vitality Blast. For the next edition, teams will be able to retain up to 10 players each in their respective squads.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 16, 2019 07:06 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).