Following the retentions and the late-night draft held on March 20, the rosters for all eight teams of The Hundred (Women’s) 2024 have taken shape for the upcoming fourth edition set to take place in July-August. However, disappointment loomed for Indian players as only two out of the seventeen registered players secured spots in the teams.
Fresh off their triumph in the 2024 Women’s Premier League (WPL) with the Royal Challengers Bangalore, winning captain Smriti Mandhana and keeper-batter Richa Ghosh were the lone Indian players chosen during the Hundred Draft in London.
Smriti Mandhana, who has been with the Southern Brave since the tournament’s inception, will continue with the team for the upcoming edition as well. With 24 appearances for the Brave, Smriti has scored 616 runs, including a highest score of 78, at an average of 29.33.
Out of 17 Indian players in The Hundred draft, only 2 players get picked for the upcoming season.#CricketTwitter #TheHundredDraft pic.twitter.com/njacMdFyzA
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) March 20, 2024
Southern Brave Women’s Squad for the Hundred 2024 (so far):
Danni Wyatt, Chloe Tryon, Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Freya Kemp, Georgia Adams, Rhianna Southby, Mary Taylor, Smriti Mandhana, Naomi Dattani, Lauren Cheatle, Kalea Moore, Tilly Corteen-Coleman
Meanwhile, Richa Ghosh, who made her debut in The Hundred during the 2023 season with the London Spirit, showcased glimpses of her talent by scoring 107 runs, including a highest score of 34, at a strike rate of 115.05 in six outings. However, for the upcoming edition, she will switch teams and represent the Birmingham Phoenix, where she will have the company of her RCB teammates Sophie Devine and Ellyse Perry.
Birmingham Phoenix Women’s squad for The Hundred 2024 (so far):
Sophie Devine, Ellyse Perry, Issy Wong, Emily Arlott, Hannah Baker, Sterre Kalis, Charis Pavely, Amy Jones, Richa Ghosh, Katie Levick, Seren Smale, Ailsa Lister, Chloe Brewer
Despite their credentials, national skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, along with established players like Shikha Pandey, Deepti Sharma, and Jemimah Rodrigues, as well as emerging talents such as Shreyanka Patil, Sobhana Asha, and Yastika Bhatia, were among those overlooked at the draft.
List of Indians who registered for the draft
£50,000 bracket
Smriti Mandhana**, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Harmanpreet Kaur*
£30,000 bracket
Renuka Singh Thakur
£17,500 bracket
Richa Ghosh**, Shreyanka Patil
Not reserved
Yastika Bhatia, Kiran Navgire, Veda Krishnamurthy, Mona Meshram, Shikha Pandey, Sneh Rana, Meghana Sabbhineni, Meghna Singh, Radha Yadav, Sobhana Asha*
**Players picked at the draft
*Names were confirmed a day out from the draft in an updated list
The draft’s limited selection of Indian players may stem from their potential unavailability due to the overlap of The Hundred and the Twenty20 (T20) Asia Cup.
Following the confirmation of team retentions on February 29, wherein each of the eight women’s sides could retain up to eight players from their 2023 squad, the draft had each team assemble a 13-member squad. The two remaining slots (£8,000) are set aside for wildcard players, to be chosen later in the year.
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