All-round Perry says the opportunity to take part in an exciting and unique cricket tournament has drawn her to The Hundred and says that competition plays a vital role in bringing the game to new fans.
Last updated: 18/03/21 8:10 am
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Australian Ellyse Perry says The Hundred represents a great opportunity to showcase women’s cricket
Australian Ellyse Perry says The Hundred represents a great opportunity to showcase women’s cricket
Australia’s Ellyse Perry has added even more international fame to the first release of The Hundred after signing Birmingham Phoenix.
The 30-year-old will join England duo Amy Jones and Georgia Elwiss and Phoenix’s New Zealand captain Sophie Devine for the ECB’s new 100-ball tournament, which will be launched on July 21 with a women’s match between Oval Invincibles and Manchester Originals at The Kia Oval.
Perry was named one of Wisden’s Five Decades of Cricket in December 2019 and closes in on 5,000 runs and 300 wikis for Australia across all forms of international cricket.
A number of all-Australia team-mates will play in the Hundred, including Meg Lanning (Welsh Fire) and Alyssa Healy (Northern Superchargers), and West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor (Southern Brave) and South African captain Dane van Niekerk (Invincibles) also involved.
2:33 Journalist Izzy Westbury told The Cricket Show earlier this month as The Hundred is already bringing more diversity, on and off the pitch.
Asked Sky Sports News drawing to The Hundred, Perry said: “The opportunity to get involved in something incredibly exciting and special for the sport.
“To be part of the first edition and play something I’m sure will be talked about for a long time and a successful run is why you play in the first place.
“It’s a real honor to have been asked to get involved and I’m really looking forward to getting caught up in it. It challenges the way we do a lot of things.
“By showcasing the most talented women’s cricket on the planet, on a big stage, alongside the men, we have the opportunity to continue to customize cricket as a sport for women and girls, as well as men and boys. I truly believe that The Hundred will be a gamer for women’s sport. “
Beth Barrett-Wild, Chief of the Women’s Centenary Competition
“Innovation is great in sport – people are often very challenging at first because they don’t like change, especially in sport, but those things can be really good.
“With the player-to-player attraction to The Hundred it’s very exciting and I think it’s going to be an amazing result.
“Likewise, I’m really looking forward to seeing the depths of women’s cricket in England and how that has developed over the last two years. “
Perry, the only woman so far to claim the double of 1,000 runs and 100 wikis in T20 internationals, believes The Hundred will attract new fans to cricket.
2:50 Southern Brave head coach Charlotte Edwards says The Hundred launch with a women’s game shows the game is now the equivalent of men’s cricket
She said: “Keeping new fans in is always important for the future of the sport.
“Cricket is a very traditional game and often pulled out, so the arrival of T20 has been a miracle for engaging new fans. thicker version so that’s appealing to people who may not have been drawn to cricket before. “
Perry is also thrilled that The Hundred will kick off with a women’s game and that the men’s and women’s competitions are on the same page, a feeling captured by England’s all-rounder Nat Sciver, who will captain Trent Rockets as summer.
1:30 Presenter Vick Hope says the Hundred Rising initiative will provide a new program of opportunities for 100 people across England and Wales
Perry said: “It’s great to have a women’s game starting the tournament. It’s a great opportunity for the sport to showcase women’s side of things. I think it’s good that competitions men and women united and standing together. “
Sciver – talking to Sky Sports Earlier this month – he said: “It’s a reminder of how far we’ve come.
“By winning this competition and being part of something new and exciting with a men’s team along with hopefully we will create a culture at the Rockets that is just one team, no matter where you are the male or female side. I think it’s really important for the public to see that we’re all one team. “
Watch The Hundred live on Sky Sports this summer!