The Hundred - men's team guide: Can defending champions Trent Rockets soar again in 2023?

We profile the eight men's team which will be taking part in this year's edition of The Hundred and assess their prospects.

Birmingham Phoenix

Last year's finish: Fourth.

First game: vs Northern Superchargers (Thursday August 3, 6.30pm).

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Home ground: Edgbaston.

Head coach: Dan Vettori.

Overseas players: Shadab Khan, Adam Milne, Kane Richardson, Tanveer Sangha*.

*Sangha will replace Shadab from August 14

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Rest of squad: Moeen Ali, Ben Duckett, Liam Livingstone, Benny Howell, Will Smeed, Jamie Smith, Tom Helm, Miles Hammond, Chris Benjamin, Dan Mousley, Jacob Bethell, Henry Brookes.

Players to watch: Liam Livingstone has proven a big-hitting batter at both county and international level, particularly in white-ball cricket, and will surely bring that threat again for the Phoenix along with offering a useful spin-bowling option. Keep an eye on exciting 21-year-old batter Will Smeed too, who already averages nearly 30 in T20 with a strike rate of over 152.

Prospects: Having missed out on the knock-out stages last year, the 2021 runners-up Phoenix will be aiming to back among the title contenders this time around and certainly appear to have a squad capable of competing at the sharp end.

London Spirit

Last year's finish: Third (lost in eliminator).

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First game: vs Oval Invincibles (Wednesday August 1, 6.30pm)

Home ground: Lord's.

Head coach: Trevor Bayliss.

Overseas player: Nathan Ellis, Daryl Mitchell, Matthew Wade.

Rest of squad: Dan Lawrence (captain), Daniel Bell-Drummond, Ravi Bopara, Mason Crane, Zak Crawley, Matthew Critchley, Liam Dawson, Michael Pepper, Adam Rossington, Jordan Thompson, Chris Wood, Mark Wood, Dan Worrall.

Players to watch: England all-formats pace bowler Mark Wood will undoubtedly be a threat with the ball, averaging under 20 in both club and international T20 cricket. At 38, Ravi Bopara brings plenty of experience from the international and domestic spheres with both the bat and ball to the team as well.

Prospects: Having vaulted from the wooden spoon in 2021 to a third-place finish and eliminator appearance in 2022, the Spirit will undoubtedly have their eyes on clinching the top prize in the tournament's third year.

Manchester Originals

Last year's finish: Second (lost in final).

First game: vs Welsh Fire (Wednesday August 2, 6.30pm).

Home ground: Emirates Old Trafford.

Head coach: Simon Katich.

Overseas players: Josh Little, Zaman Khan*, Usama Mir, Ashton Turner.

*Khan replaces Little from August 16, Little available again for eliminator and final

Rest of squad: Jos Buttler (captain), Laurie Evans, Richard Gleeson, Tom Hartley, Max Holden, Tom Lammonby, Wayne Madsen, Jamie Overton, Ben Raine, Phil Salt, Mitchell Stanley, Josh Tongue, Paul Walter.

Players to watch: Jamie Overton offers a big-hitting presence in the middle order with the bat and a fast-bowling option with the ball as well. Up-and-coming pace bowler Josh Tongue has shown glimpses of his ability in the Test arena for England this year and will be another threat for the Originals.

Prospects: A strong squad with plenty of depth in both the batting and bowling ranks should see the Originals in the mix in 2023. Can they go all the way after last year's two-wicket defeat to Trent Rockets in the final though?

Northern Superchargers

Last year's finish: Sixth.

First game: vs Birmingham Phoenix (Thursday August 3, 6.30pm).

Home ground: Headingley.

Head coach: James Foster.

Overseas players: Wayne Parnell (captain), Matthew Short, David Wiese.

Rest of squad: Tom Banton, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Bas de Leede, Adam Hose, Adam Lyth, Callum Parkinson, Matthew Potts, Adil Rashid, Ollie Robinson, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, Saif Zaib.

Players to watch: Adam Lyth was the third-highest run-scorer in the men's Hundred last year with 299 to his name and will be expected to form a core part of the Superchargers' batting line-up again. England white-ball bowler Reece Topley will be aiming to make his mark as well after suffering an injury in this year's Indian Premier League.

Prospects: The Superchargers' men have been mid-table finishers during the first two editions of The Hundred, but on paper seem to have a squad which will be capable of challenging for a place in the knock-out stages in 2023.

Oval Invincibles

Last year's finish: Fifth.

First game: vs London Spirit (Wednesday August 1, 6.30pm).

Home ground: The Kia Oval.

Head coach: Tom Moody.

Overseas players: Ihsanullah Khan, Heinrich Klaasen, Sunil Narine, Jimmy Neesham*, Adam Zampa *.

*Zampa will replace Narine when he leaves for the Caribbean Premier League; Neesham will replace Klaasen from August 20

Rest of squad: Sam Billings (captain), Gus Atkinson, Danny Briggs, Zak Chappell, Jordan Cox, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Will Jacks, Tom Lawes, Tawanda Muyeye, Jason Roy, Nathan Sowter, Ross Whiteley.

Players to watch: Will Jacks led the way with 261 runs for the Invincibles in 2022, including an unbeaten 108, to finish as the men's competition's fourth-highest run-scorer. England batter Jason Roy has a point to prove ahead of this year's Cricket World Cup as well.

Prospects: The Invincibles have narrowly missed out on a place in the eliminator in the first two editions of The Hundred, so will at least be aiming to go one better this time around.

Southern Brave

Last year's finish: Seventh.

First game: vs Trent Rockets (Tuesday August 1, 6.30pm).

Home ground: The Ageas Bowl.

Head coach: Stephen Fleming.

Overseas players: Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Tim David, Mitchell Santner*.

*Santner replaces David from August 20

Rest of squad: James Vince (captain), Rehan Ahmed, Jafer Chohan, Alex Davies, Leus du Plooy, Matthew Fisher, James Fuller, George Garton, Chris Jordan, Tymal Mills, Craig Overton, Joe Wetherley.

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Players to watch: Spinner Rehan Ahmed made an impact during England's Test tour of Pakistan last winter and now has an opportunity to show what he can do with the white ball on the big stage. Chris Jordan is back for his third season with the team after starring with both the ball and the bat as they won the title in 2021.

Prospects: The Brave were unable to defend their title in 2022, finishing seventh with three wins from eight games. They will, at the very least, be aiming to better last year's showing this time around.

Trent Rockets

Last year's finish: First (champions).

First game: vs Southern Brave (Tuesday August 1, 6.30pm).

Home ground: Trent Bridge.

Head coach: Andy Flower.

Overseas players: Colin Munro, Daniel Sams, Ish Sodhi*.

*Sodhi will join from August 10

Rest of squad: Lewis Gregory (captain), Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Dawid Malan, Alex Hales, Luke Wood, Sam Cook, Samit Patel, Sam Hain, Brad Wheal, Matt Carter, John Turner, Tom Moores, Joe Root.

Players to watch: Alex Hales scored 259 runs in the 2022 edition and has long proven to be a destructive top-order batter in white-ball cricket. Likewise, the experienced Samit Patel has thrilled the Nottinghamshire faithful at Trent Bridge for many years with his hard-hitting middle-order batting and effective slow left-arm bowling.

Prospects: The Rockets' sights will undoubtedly be on retaining the title they secured with a two-wicket win over the Originals in the final, while avoiding the drop-off 2021 champions the Brave suffered last year.

Welsh Fire

Last year's finish: Eighth.

First game: vs Manchester Originals (Wednesday August 2, 6.30pm)

Home ground: Sophia Gardens.

Head coach: Mike Hussey.

Overseas players: Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan), Glenn Phillips (New Zealand), Haris Rauf (Pakistan).

Rest of squad: Tom Abell (captain), Jonny Bairstow, David Willey, Joe Clarke, Ben Green, David Payne, Roelof van der Merwe, Jake Ball, Stephen Eskinazi, Dan Douthwaite, George Scrimshaw, Luke Wells, Chris Cooke.

Players to watch: Pakistani pace duo Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf will both add some potency to the Fire's bowling attack, having both starred in T20 cricket, and will cause problems for every opponent they come up against.

Prospects: After going winless in 2022, getting one victory on the board would be progress for the Fire. They have lost their leading run scorer from last year, Ben Duckett, to Birmingham Phoenix, but have a new head coach in former Australia batter Mike Hussey who will be aiming to get things moving in the right direction.

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