in the history of the hundred cricket, lots of things revolved around the hundred, The Hundred did not evolve in a sudden phase. many debates with the cricket board, ex-cricketers, counties, management, and stakeholders. Then they decided that we should hold a 100-ball cricket tournament called The Hunderd in July 2021. In the process of a hundred league, the big problem for the ECB management that, how they conceived the England Traditionist cricket community against modern cricket they followed England’s conventional cricket law and they were very strict having the England rules and laws because they understood ourselves the custodian of the cricket poineenoris legacy. in England, many cricketers think that England cricket is very special to us because of England’s origins of cricket and we did not introduce such kind of cricket that damaged Test cricket. so that’s the reason the ECB took a very long time to introduce the Hundred Cricket League. Now we have discussed the story, birth, and the idea of 100 balls in each inning competition.
History Began in September 2016
back in 2016, eight years ago ECB officials came to the point that the English countries decided to vote and support the shorter format of the competition finally, domestic first-class countries voted in favor of the idea of the ECB for a new city-based tournament. Offered five options by the ECB executive, the counties (plus the MCC) voted by a margin of 16-3 in favor of Option Four, which will see a new competition played by city-based sides starting as soon as 2018. that only Surrey, Kent, and Sussex voted against the proposals at the meeting attended by the chairmen and chief executives of all 18 counties and the MCC. Colin Graves, the ECB chairman, said: “We’ve all been looking at how we can use domestic T20 for an even bigger purpose, especially getting more young people to play. This format was invented here and is successful worldwide. It can excite new fans, attract the best players, and fuel the future of the game, on and off the pitch.”
October 2017
Firstly, ECB officials have decided that the T20competiution of cricket for England owned league that like other countries runs their countries but they have not decided on the format much shorter than the other leagues like IPL and Big Bash. Now some twist in the process of making the Hundred, Desert Springs, a golf resort in southern Spain, the ECB’s chief commercial director, Sanjay Patel, first put forward the idea of 100-ball cricket. Patel gave a presentation to Colin Graves, ECB chief executive, Tom Harrison, and England director of cricket, Andrew Strauss, which launched a shorter, simpler game than T20. “Don’t prejudge it,” he said, “just go away and have a think.” With a new broadcast deal banked, ensuring cricket’s return to BBC TV, the board was considering a radical move.
a video Sanjay Patel – The Story behind the Hundred :
October 2018
in October 2018 ECB officially announced a 100-ball competition and its Laws and Rules. rather than a T20 league. because all of the officials including Colin Graves the ECB chairman, Tom Harrison, and England’s director of cricket, Andrew Strauss, in a lighter note Harrison quoted Jokes for his colleague Andrew Strauss. when Strauss later came in for criticism after suggesting a simplified game would be aimed at “mums and kids”.
October 2019
ECB introduced a picking policy through the draft system and the first draft was held in Sky Studio London, UK in 2019. Two major events were played in 2019, the ICC World Cup and the Ashes trophy luckily in the One Day World Cup first every title was won under the captaincy of Eoin Morgan England would hold the trophy and ground on home soil. Another sight, in ashes England performed in the right way and leved the series 2-2, So in the year 2019 is historic for England’s cricket and unforgettable. works going on behind the scenes and officials announced they should set up the first ”The Hundred” in 2020. The eight-team names – Birmingham Phoenix, London Spirit, Manchester Originals, Northern Superchargers, Oval Invincibles, Southern Brave, Trent Rockets and Welsh Fire – were confirmed, and Test players were allocated. Later the same month, the first sporting draft held in the UK took place at Sky’s studios in west London; Rashid Khan was the first player picked, followed by Andre Russell and Aaron Finch, as the teams set about selecting 96 players from a starting list of 571.
The COVID-19 pandemic story in 2020
in December 2019 COVID-19 pandemic started and spread to the whole world in March 2020. number of events were postponed including the Hundred First Edition and the ICC T20 World Cup. In England, COVID-19 attacked ample of people were hospitalized and thousands died. So in this view, The Hundred was postponed.
July 2021
the first edition was made in July 2021, all measures that took place during the COVID-19 pandemic but did not fully escape from the world infections. All the protocols followed by the ECB administration included quarantine, bubbles, isolation, wearing face masks, not touching hands, and not using stevia on the ball in the ground fields. The women’s competition was particularly affected, with all 11 Australian internationals who had initially signed up eventually pulling out – including Ellyse Perry.
Despite, all the hustle of concerns around rising Covid-19 infection rates, The Hundred starts on 21 July 2021. The first season of The Hundred was the inaugural season of The Hundred, a professional franchise 100-ball cricket tournament involving eight men’s and women’s teams located in major cities across England and Wales. The tournament was run by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and took place for the first time. The event gave equal weight to both men’s and women’s sides, with almost all the matches taking place as back-to-back double-headers at the same venue on the same day, with one ticket giving access to both the men’s and women’s games.
The Hundred Rules: Laws & Format
in Hundred ICC cricket World rules would apply with some exceptions in 100 ball tournament:
- Law 11 (Intervals):
- there are two innings, each normally lasting 65 minutes separated by a 15-minute interval
- if the first innings is completed before the scheduled time of the interval, the interval takes place immediately
- if the first innings is delayed or interrupted, the interval is shortened to 10 minutes
- Law 12 (Start of play; cessation of play):
- each team shall bat for 20 overs unless all out earlier
- the fielding side is entitled to take one 90-second strategic time-out (but not during the first 25 balls of the innings)
- Law 13 (Innings):
- a match consists of one innings per side, each limited to a maximum of 20 overs
- no bowler may bowl more than four overs in an innings
- Law 17 (The over):
- an over consists of five balls
- two overs shall be bowled from each end alternately. Batters shall not change ends between overs
- a bowler shall be allowed to change ends as often as desired
- a bowler shall not be allowed to bowl more than 2 consecutive overs
- Law 21 (No ball):
- the penalty for a no-ball is two runs
- the delivery following a no-ball shall be a free hit
- Law 28 (The fielder):
- there shall not be more than 5 fielders on the leg side
- for the first five (powerplay) overs, no more than two fielders are permitted to be outside the 30-yard circle
- Law 40 (Timed out):
- an incoming batter must be ready to receive the next ball within 60 seconds after the dismissal or retirement of the preceding batter
- in the event of the above requirement not being met, the umpire shall issue one warning
- if the above requirement is not met for a subsequent time in the same innings, five penalty runs shall be awarded to the fielding side
- if the batter is not ready within 80 seconds, they will be timed out
The Hundred Tournament Summary
| First Edition | 21 July – 21 August 2021 |
| Name | The Hundred |
| Countries | England & Wales |
| Administration | ECB & Wales Board |
| No.of Venues | Eight Venues |
| No. of Teams | Eight Teams (city Based) |
| Teams | Women & Men |
| Format | 100 balls inning |
| Counties | 18 |
| Overs | 5 Balls |
| Group Matches | Every Team played Two Matches |
| Broadcasters | Sky Sports and the BBC |
| Slogan | Every one ball counts |
| Official Website | thehundred.com |
Conclusion
The Hundred carries the T20 cricket legacy because nowadays modern cricket is heavily influenced by financial incentives which benefit players. Three-hour cricket generates numerous opportunities for players, a point highlighted by ECB officials.. mentioned above. Commercial cricket has emerged with the participation of international stars, and franchises select players from across the globe, providing them with hospitality, exposure, and financial rewards based on their talent, skills, and commitment. This model produces competitive cricket and offers several advantages, including improved fitness, a quick game of cricket that engages the audience, and more professionalism because mistakes chances are very narrow. more importantly, players take place on their nation’s side. all these factors are caused by the commencement of ”The Hundred” competition as well, Bith ECB and Wales Cricket Board, took steps timely and revolutionized the cricket landscape cricket, by introducing a 100-ball format.