Kia Super League squads unveiled ahead of second edition of T20 cricket competition

Australian superstar Ellyse Perry will return to Loughborough Lightning for the second edition of the Kia Super League, the ECB confirmed on Thursday.

Perry, who was named the 2016 Leading Woman Cricketer in the World by cricket publication Wisden, will be joined at Loughborough by international team-mates Kristen Beams and Elyse Villani.

Three further Australian players will also take part, as well as New Zealand superstar Suzie Bates, who returns to take part in the competition alongside West Indies World T20 heroines Hayley Matthews and Stafanie Taylor.

A total of 18 overseas players from at least four different nations will play in the tournament, along with all 18 of England's centrally contracted female cricketers.

Sky Sports will broadcast eight live Kia Super League matches, in a partnership deal with the ECB that sees women's domestic cricket shown on TV screens for the very first time.

Danielle Wyatt switches from Lancashire Thunder to the Southern Vipers as a replacement for the unavailable Lydia Greenway while fellow England player, Danielle Hazell, will represent Lancashire Thunder as their new captain.

Lancashire will also welcome back Sarah Taylor, who is targeting a return to the England squad this summer after taking time away from the game due to personal issues.

ECB Director of Women's Cricket Clare Connor said: "This is a huge summer for women's cricket and we look forward to seeing the world's best talent on show at both the ICC Women's World Cup followed by the Kia Super League.

"There will hopefully be some great momentum behind women's cricket after the World Cup and the Kia Super League can take advantage of that. It is an opportunity to continue to raise the bar for our sport.

"After the success of 2016, we know we can expect to see some outstanding performances in the second season of this T20 competition. Hopefully the players and the quality of cricket can inspire new participants and fans across the country."

New Lancashire Thunder captain Hazell said: "It's a real honour to be named captain of the Lancashire Thunder.

"I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to captain England for a game during the winter against Sri Lanka and I'm looking forward to building on my captaincy experience and hopefully leading the Thunder to a successful season."

After the success of the first Kia Super League last summer, the second season will see six teams taking part in a round-robin competition over a 17-day period and across 13 different venues from Thursday August 10 to Saturday August 26.

The competition will climax in a showcase finals day on Friday September 1 at the 1st Central County Ground in Hove.

England Women's Squad and overseas player allocations in full:

Lancashire Thunder: Kate Cross, Danielle Hazell, Sarah Taylor, Jess Jonassen (AUS), Amy Satterthwaite (NZ), Lea Tahuhu (NZ)

Loughborough Lightning: Georgia Elwiss, Amy Jones, Beth Langston, Kristen Beams (AUS), Ellyse Perry (AUS), Elyse Villani (AUS)

Southern Vipers: Tash Farrant, Danielle Wyatt, Suzie Bates (NZ), Hayley Matthews (WI), Dane van Niekerk (SA)

Surrey Stars: Tammy Beaumont, Alex Hartley, Laura Marsh, Natalie Sciver, Rene Farrell (AUS), Marizanne Kapp (SA)

Western Storm: Heather Knight, Anya Shrubsole, Fran Wilson, Rachel Priest (NZ), Stafanie Taylor (WI)

Yorkshire Diamonds: Katherine Brunt, Jenny Gunn, Lauren Winfield, Sophie Devine (NZ), Sune Luus (SA), Beth Mooney (AUS)