The Hundred could undergo a radical overhaul from 2026 as wealthy overseas owners officially take over teams; team names will be adjusted, an IPL-style auction could be completed and there is a chance that the tournament will feature an Indian male player for the first time; Jordan Cox urges against switching to T20 format
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Sky Sports cricket pundits Nasser Hussain and Dinesh Karthike discuss the future of The Hundred after major overseas investment
Changes are coming to The 100.
We don't yet know how fast or how drastic the changes will be, but they will certainly come as overseas investors begin to exert their influence on the tournament ahead of the 2026 edition.
Bids for six of the eight franchises were completed earlier this summer, while deals for the Oval Invincibles (whose men's team won a third straight title in 2025) and Trent Rockets are set to follow suit.
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Highlights from the Oval Invincibles' 26-point win over the Trent Rockets in the men's 100 final, as Sam Billings' side made it a historic three-game win.
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Highlights from Northern Superchargers' win over Southern Brave in the Women's Hundred final at Lord's
More than £500million will be pumped into domestic football to help secure its future, but those who spent the money will surely want things their way when they officially take charge of their hundreds of teams in October.
Names, uniforms, the player signing process and perhaps even the 100-ball format could all be changed in the future as The Hundred enters a radical new era.
Change from 100-ball to T20?
The Hundred format remains an outlier among other franchise tournaments using the T20 format, which has seen a surge in popularity since the IPL was launched in 2007.
However, Jordan Cox, the top scorer on the 2025 triumphant Invincibles men's team, is against the switch to the T20 format, saying: “I really like the format. I think it's the best format.”
Pictured: Oval Invincibles player Jordan Cox says The Hundred should retain its current format
“I know some people want him to move to T20 but why do you want to be the second best in the world [after the IPL]?
“We stand out because of that. You will never be better than the IPL, so what's the point of changing and being second?
“It's the perfect venue for English cricket. Friends, family and kids love to come and watch, so why spoil it?”
The advantages of the current format of The Hundred include the fact that it takes less time to complete than the T20 format and there are 40 fewer balls per match.
The 100 days, which include a women's match and a men's game, finish by 9.30pm on weekdays and 9pm on weekends, making it more appealing to families and easing the commute home.
Image: The current Hundred (100 balls) format is designed to appeal to families as it allows games to be played faster.
Southern Brave women's captain Georgia Adams added: “If you have young families, you watch the women's game and leave halfway through the men's before it gets too loud. If you're here for a party, you come a little later, watch the women's cricket and stay.”
There is always the option to cancel doubleheaders if time is tight, but they have been one of The Hundred's successes, as the men's and women's teams play in the same facilities and often watch each other's games.
Player acquisition?
One hundred teams were allowed to retain up to 10 players from their 2024 rosters heading into the 2025 campaign before completing their rosters through drafts and one direct overseas signing.
However, the situation could change dramatically from 2026, with an IPL-style auction a likely scenario after The Hundred managing director Vikram Bannerjee told ESPNcricinfo that a “reset” was coming.
Image: Could an IPL-style auction come into effect for The Hundred?
Most players could be acquired through an auction, as in the IPL, and additional contracts would be given to players through direct signings, likely on a multi-year basis.
The increase in the wage bill is set to come into effect in 2026, which will help retain the services of leading white-ball cricketers who may currently be tempted to play in America's Major League Cricket at the same time.
Sky Sports pundit and former England captain Nasser Hussain is against too many changes of players, saying: “It's a month-long tournament and after about three weeks you start to associate what you're watching with it. The fans and spectators know who's on their side.”
“So I don't want too much. I want to come to the games, the fans want to come and know who's playing, who's the captain, and have some kind of connection.”
Invincibles captain Sam Billings said: “If the squad kept changing every year, I wouldn't like it. What the IPL does well is that after a few cycles the squad changes but the legendary players are still there.”
“For example, Sam Curran will stay at the Oval no matter what. Not only because he is one of our best players, but because he is the face of the Oval. From a marketing point of view, it would be an obvious decision.
“[The auction] definitely gives a chance to other teams that haven't had that success. It gives them a clean slate to say, 'We can build a team that can win a title in the next three years.'
Team names?
Image: Manchester Originals will include the 'Super Giants' moniker in their name from next season.
Tech Titans, the group of investors who bought Lord's-based London Spirit, have confirmed the Spirit name will be retained in future campaigns.
However, Manchester Originals will include the 'Super Giants' moniker in their name after Sanjeev Goenka's RPSG Group acquired a 70 per cent stake in the team.
Goenka owns IPL team Lucknow Super Giants and SA20 team Durban Super Giants.
The Originals name change is unlikely to be the last among the eight franchises as Northern Superchargers are linked to IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Meanwhile, the Invincibles are set to join the Mumbai Indians, which includes MI Cape Town in the SA20, while a name change to MI London is also being discussed.
First Indian male player in The 100?
In photo: Ravichandran Ashwin has retired from the IPL and may now play in The Hundred in the future.
Indian women's cricket stars Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur have played in The Hundred, but no man from the country has participated as BCCI rules prohibit Indian male cricketers from playing in overseas leagues.
However, Ravichandran Ashwin's departure from the IPL, following his retirement from all international cricket late last year, means he is now eligible to play overseas and intends to do just that, saying: “My time as an explorer of the game in various leagues begins.”
Given the IPL's huge influence on The Hundred, Ashwin's performance there next year seems like a worthy candidate.
Also, you wonder if the BCCI will relax restrictions on opportunities for its players overseas in the future, given how Indian owners now dominate the world game.
Dinesh Karthik, from the Sky Sports commentary unit, became the first Indian to play in another country's franchise league when he represented Paarl Royals in SA20 earlier this year.
How can wins and losses matter more?
Image: The Oval Invincibles Men have a strong connection with their home fans
Hussein says The Hundred is doing a lot of things right, but what is the tournament currently lacking?
“You can't dispute the level and quality of the players – both international and domestic – and you can't dispute the opinion of the fans,” he said.
“If you go to any Hundred match, you will see a youthful and family atmosphere – that aspect was absolutely realized – but the one thing I don’t feel yet is the tribal spirit that the organizers said they wanted.
“I think it happens sometimes in stadiums, especially at the Oval and Headingley, but at home I don't think it happens that often. It's like 'yellow team versus green team, green team versus blue team'.
“I want a little more 'this is important, we care about this' so that you can be really disappointed when you lose and be great when you win.”
Sourse: skysports.com
