Sophie Ecclestone: "I'm buzzing to be captaining Manchester Originals this year. The Hundred is such a great competition to take part in and I can't wait to lead the girls out at Old Trafford"; Tom Abell: "I jumped at the opportunity to come and take a leadership role at Welsh Fire"
Monday 22 May 2023 16:10, UK
Ellyse Perry, Tom Abell and Sophie Ecclestone have been confirmed as captains for The Hundred, with five of the eight teams taking part announcing their skippers on Monday.
Australian star Perry is joined by Birmingham local Moeen Ali at Edgbaston as a captain for Birmingham Phoenix, while Ecclestone will lead Manchester Originals and Abell will skipper Welsh Fire.
Jos Buttler will continue to take the reins for the men's Originals team and Tammy Beaumont is to lead the Fire women's side.
Dane van Niekerk and Sam Billings, and Anya Shrubsole and James Vince, will continue their captaincy roles at Oval Invincibles and Southern Brave respectively.
London Spirit have already announced England duo Heather Knight and Dan Lawrence as their sides' captains, with Northern Superchargers and Trent Rockets yet to reveal their captains.
"I'm buzzing to be captaining Manchester Originals this year. The Hundred is such a great competition to take part in and I can't wait to lead the girls out at Emirates Old Trafford," Ecclestone said.
"I like what we've done in the draft, we've got the makings of a world-class side, and hopefully our fans will come out in their numbers as ever to cheer us on."
Abell, who has moved from Birmingham Phoenix to join Welsh Fire men's coach Mike Hussey in Cardiff, said: "I jumped at the opportunity to come and take a leadership role with Mike here. I'm really excited by the challenge that lies in front of us and we're both really keen to bring some success to Welsh Fire. We did some really great work at the draft and it's going to be really enjoyable to lead this group of players."
The third year of The Hundred gets under way on Tuesday August 1, live on Sky Sports, with a double-header at Trent Bridge - the first of 34 matchdays that promise high-octane men's and women's sporting action, live music, and a host of family-friendly entertainment.
More than half a million people attended games during The Hundred's second year in 2022, including a record-breaking 271,000 watching live women's fixtures across the competition and more families buying tickets than in 2021.
