England’s test captain Ben Stokes will miss out on the 100 edition of this summer as he prioritizes fitness ahead of Australia’s ashes later this year.
Stokes, 33, is not held by the Northern Superchargers as the team announced the latest signature for the 2025 tournament. The All-Round tore his left hamstring during a tour of New Zealand in England in December months after suffering the same injury while playing for the Superchargers in August. After surgery, he was excluded for at least three months.
England’s next Test assignment will be against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge in May, but Stokes is looking to be fitting for the April county championship season. The 100 begins on August 5th, and the ashes begin in Perth on November 21st, one day after the end of England’s five Test series against India.
Meanwhile, Australian batsman Steve Smith joined the Wales fire as part of a new civil negotiation system, allowing the team to sign one man and one female player outside of the 100 drafts. Smith was scheduled to play for the fire first in 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic delayed the launch of the tournament.
Other major signatures include Marcus Stoinis joining Trent Rockets, Meg Lanning Singing Singing with Oval Invincibles and Rashid Khan moving invincible alongside England’s all-around Nat Sciver-Brunt.
Trent Vault joined the Birmingham Phoenix, while David Miller and Heinrich Krasen were greeted with the Superchargers and Manchester originals, respectively.
With 68 spots still open, the team completed the team with 100 drafts on March 12th, followed by a wildcard draft for domestic players in the country in May.
Oval Invincibles won the men’s title in 2024, while the London Spirit claimed the women’s trophy. The Cricket Board of England and Wales (ECB) has recently oversaw the sale of stocks in eight franchises, collectively valued at over £975 million and about 5 to be reinvested in English cricket. It generated £20 million.