The Hundred 2025

[Voice of fair play]

That's not quite what I meant, but I think you knew that.

Is fact that The Hundred is 100 balls rather than 120 the only thing you oppose about the competition?

Absolutely not, I think there needs to be a balanced argument.

Acceptance imo is required that we need that designated window for a tournament and all focus on it with live games every day like IPL, where at the same time accepting plenty wrong with the hundred and loads of room for improvement and yes one of them is changing it to T20.

But more than not we don’t, we constantly have petty and quite frankly tiresome digs at something rather than adult conversations about something that has brought a hell of a lot of money into the English game and how that money can be used to good use and how we can tweak that main competition to be successful

I find it incredibly ironic that for years and years when I was singing from the rooftops the good things about T20 cricket in this country and the domestic competition and others were slating it as ‘ slogging’ ‘ not proper cricket’ , baseball etc etc.

Now a another competition has arrived apparently it was always a brilliant competition

 

[Steak Pie]

Absolutely not, I think there needs to be a balanced argument.

Acceptance imo is required that we need that designated window for a tournament and all focus on it with live games every day like IPL, where at the same time accepting plenty wrong with the hundred and loads of room for improvement and yes one of them is changing it to T20.

But more than not we don’t, we constantly have petty and quite frankly tiresome digs at something rather than adult conversations about something that has brought a hell of a lot of money into the English game and how that money can be used to good use and how we can tweak that main competition to be successful

I find it incredibly ironic that for years and years when I was singing from the rooftops the good things about T20 cricket in this country and the domestic competition and others were slating it as ‘ slogging’ ‘ not proper cricket’ , baseball etc etc.

Now a another competition has arrived apparently it was always a brilliant competition

Laughable.

Most posters given up having an adult conversation with you about the 16.4. Your response is always to just ignore any counterpoint and repeat the same half truths.

There is no first class cricket in the country for the next five weeks. We'll done, you've won.

 

[Voice of fair play]

Laughable.

Most posters given up having an adult conversation with you about the 16.4. Your response is always to just ignore any counterpoint and repeat the same half truths.

There is no first class cricket in the country for the next five weeks. Well done, you've won.

It would help if the first class game took the England blueprint and tried to make the game entertaining and looked for positive results.

Instead you have a red ball competition where nearly every team had drawn more games than they have won.

You were the poster I referred to who incredibly still think kids will get interested in the game watching Dom Sibley in the championship rather than Jos Buttler in a flagship short format tournament in August
There has never been any adult conversation with you or anyone about how to tweak or improve the competition.

It’s just been scrap it scrap it and scrap it some more

 

[Steak Pie]

It would help if the first class game took the England blueprint and tried to make the game entertaining and looked for positive results.

Instead you have a red ball competition where nearly every team had drawn more games than they have won.

You were the poster I referred to who incredibly still think kids will get interested in the game watching Dom Sibley in the championship rather than Jos Buttler in a flagship short format tournament in August
There has never been any adult conversation with you or anyone about how to tweak or improve the competition.

It’s just been scrap it scrap it and scrap it some more

I guessed as much.

2nd mention of Dom Sibley in as many posts whilst moaning about the lack of adult conversations. As I said, laughable.

 

[Voice of fair play]

I guessed as much.

2nd mention of Dom Sibley in as many posts whilst moaning about the lack of adult conversations. As I said, laughable.

Let’s say for sake of argument there was county championship cricket during this August, based of the way the dry summer has been, results so far and the lack of willing on teams part to look for positive results.

75% of the games would end up as bore draws.

Yet you still think it would grow the game

You can only have adult conversation about tweaking and improving a tournament if you accept short format tournament required in the first place which you have chosen not too.
Instead preferring to not even call it by its real name and look at every possible angle to have a go at it

 

[Parkside]

I guessed as much.

2nd mention of Dom Sibley in as many posts whilst moaning about the lack of adult conversations. As I said, laughable.

Tiresome rather than laughable. @Voice of play invariably ignores any counter argument and repeats ad nausea flagship tournaments,dedicated window,world class stars which will grow the game even though it's inaccessible geography wise to the majority of youngsters who wouldn't recognise a world class star if he walked past them in the street and has lost £ millions since its inception. No one expects youngsters to follow a 4 day game which is why a domestic T20 was pioneered in England, has proved appealing to youngsters without the cost of the obscene salaries offered to Hundred players.
Evidence to justify his claims is never offered.
Youngsters identify with local stars not foreign ones whom they've never heard of.

 

[Provider]

Absolutely not, I think there needs to be a balanced argument.

Acceptance imo is required that we need that designated window for a tournament and all focus on it with live games every day like IPL, where at the same time accepting plenty wrong with the hundred and loads of room for improvement and yes one of them is changing it to T20.

But more than not we don’t, we constantly have petty and quite frankly tiresome digs at something rather than adult conversations about something that has brought a hell of a lot of money into the English game and how that money can be used to good use and how we can tweak that main competition to be successful

I find it incredibly ironic that for years and years when I was singing from the rooftops the good things about T20 cricket in this country and the domestic competition and others were slating it as ‘ slogging’ ‘ not proper cricket’ , baseball etc etc.

Now a another competition has arrived apparently it was always a brilliant competition

I'm not sure what relevance anything after the first two words has to what we were discussing.

I'm interested in what you don't like about The Hundred to make you "not a fan" of it.

You've already said one thing is it being 100 balls rather than 120. What other things about it make you not a fan?

 

[Voice of fair play]

I'm not sure what relevance anything after the first two words has to what we were discussing.

I'm interested in what you don't like about The Hundred to make you "not a fan" of it.

You've already said one thing is it being 100 balls rather than 120. What other things about it make you not a fan?

I don’t like the sets rather than overs, difficult to relate too, find myself when a team chasing a score, working out how many overs left and what a team needs a over to knock the score off

I don’t like it been less balls as 120 proven to be a successful product.

I would prefer it to be more geographically spread maybe a team further North East and one in the South West.

I don’t like the graphics on the game on the screen looks bad imo.

I do like it in a designated window with a live game every day like in the IPL

I do like it’s in peak time to attract a new audience for the longevity of the game

I do like the fact new investment which imo will both change it back to T20 and hopefully attract top players to play.

And filter money down to recreational cricket and county cricket that has windfalls they would not have had without it.

I throughly enjoy the tremendous quality and skill in show in the IPL and see no reason we can’t have the second biggest short format competition in the world, which has more chance to grow the game imo.

There is pros and cons for the competition which imo the debate should be about.

now that it’s obvious it’s here to stay..

But the debate never moves on as some fans minds are soo closed that they totally unwilling to accept some of the pros.

And have a conversation about how the tournament could be tweaked to make it better now it here to stay.

They rather just keep given it petty childish insults than a grown up debate about how to make it better

 

[Parkside]

But the debate never moves on as some fans minds are soo closed that they totally unwilling to accept some of the pros.

And have a conversation about how the tournament could be tweaked to make it better now it here to stay.

They rather just keep given it petty childish insults than a grown up debate about how to make it better

As opposed to your open mind and willingness to offer rational counter argument to those who offer rational reasons for having reservations about franchise cricket. The closed minds are those that can't address those reservations and call such concerns childish. Care to address these concerns in a rational and adult manner?

 

[Voice of fair play]

As opposed to your open mind and willingness to offer rational counter argument to those who offer rational reasons for having reservations about franchise cricket. The closed minds are those that can't address those reservations and call such concerns childish. Care to address these concerns in a rational and adult manner?

In answer to your question there is and always been reservations about private investment and franchise ownership.

But like with any investment time will tell whether it proves a success.

The money is certainly going to be helpful for counties and the recreational game now.


However that ship has sailed the teams have been bought therefore it’s not going to get scrapped or chucked out the of the calendar, as 520 million has been paid for it.

Is it possible to debate how to make the tournament better, how to tweak it to successfully integrate into our game, how to include the right teams, do we include more teams, where does it fit into the calendar, should it get changed to 20 overs etc etc

Or do we just have to constantly belittle everything about it constantly call for it to be scrapped when we know that not going to happen, and call it silly names forever?

 

[Provider]

I don’t like the sets rather than overs, difficult to relate too, find myself when a team chasing a score, working out how many overs left and what a team needs a over to knock the score off

I don’t like it been less balls as 120 proven to be a successful product.

I would prefer it to be more geographically spread maybe a team further North East and one in the South West.

I don’t like the graphics on the game on the screen looks bad imo.

I do like it in a designated window with a live game every day like in the IPL

I do like it’s in peak time to attract a new audience for the longevity of the game

I do like the fact new investment which imo will both change it back to T20 and hopefully attract top players to play.

And filter money down to recreational cricket and county cricket that has windfalls they would not have had without it.

I throughly enjoy the tremendous quality and skill in show in the IPL and see no reason we can’t have the second biggest short format competition in the world, which has more chance to grow the game imo.

There is pros and cons for the competition which imo the debate should be about.

now that it’s obvious it’s here to stay..

But the debate never moves on as some fans minds are soo closed that they totally unwilling to accept some of the pros.

And have a conversation about how the tournament could be tweaked to make it better now it here to stay.

They rather just keep given it petty childish insults than a grown up debate about how to make it better

All of the things you like about it could have been done with the existing T20 Blast, without adding another competition to the calendar with a bunch of made up franchise teams that played and fans alike don't care about.

I notice that one of the things on your list of things you didn't like about it was the fact it's played by a bunch of made up franchise teams. I think that explains a lot as to why you are such a champion of it. A lot of people quite rightly see this as a threat to county cricket. Something they have followed for years and have a great affinity for. And no amount of blackmail money will convince people otherwise.

Look, I'm not against having the showcase white ball competition in peak time that you're desperate for. I can see that it makes some sense. But to do that by adding a fourth competition to an already packed calendar and to do that in a way that sidelines the existing domestic structure in this country is disgraceful IMO.

The domestic calendar in this country was already a mess. It's unfixable while the white elephant of The Hundred is still around.

 

[Voice of fair play]

All of the things you like about it could have been done with the existing T20 Blast, without adding another competition to the calendar with a bunch of made up franchise teams that played and fans alike don't care about.

I notice that one of the things on your list of things you didn't like about it was the fact it's played by a bunch of made up franchise teams. I think that explains a lot as to why you are such a champion of it. A lot of people quite rightly see this as a threat to county cricket. Something they have followed for years and have a great affinity for. And no amount of blackmail money will convince people otherwise.

Look, I'm not against having the showcase white ball competition in peak time that you're desperate for. I can see that it makes some sense. But to do that by adding a fourth competition to an already packed calendar and to do that in a way that sidelines the existing domestic structure in this country is disgraceful IMO.

The domestic calendar in this country was already a mess. It's unfixable while the white elephant of The Hundred is still around.

Never really disagreed with any of that.

This country needs and should have a showcase tournament in peak time over 20 overs.

Every single other country has it, the IPL despite reservations about it on here is high quality, highly skilled and highly talented competition.

We should have something similar, whether you could fit 18 teams into a relatively small window and successfully run it and please all concerned is a different debate altogether

But to me whether it counties or franchises has never and still isn’t my main concern.

We should have a tournament in this modern era in a window with the worlds best T20 cricketers playing in it, at peak time!

I am totally and utterly in agreement that 4 tournaments too much and how we fix that problem a lot more complicated.

There is still people out there who believe county championship should be played in August and that getting children to that would grow and get them interested in the game rather than watching a 20 over tournament every day in the school holidays which is nonsense imo.

And there is still plenty people out that view short format cricket as ‘ not proper cricket’ ‘ slogging’ ‘ baseball’ etc etc

When in fact it’s highly skilled, highly talented cricketers who have developed batting, bowling and fielding skills to a whole new level

 

[Parkside]

In answer to your question there is and always been reservations about private investment and franchise ownership.

But like with any investment time will tell whether it proves a success.

The money is certainly going to be helpful for counties and the recreational game now.


However that ship has sailed the teams have been bought therefore it’s not going to get scrapped or chucked out the of the calendar, as 520 million has been paid for it.

Is it possible to debate how to make the tournament better, how to tweak it to successfully integrate into our game, how to include the right teams, do we include more teams, where does it fit into the calendar, should it get changed to 20 overs etc etc

Or do we just have to constantly belittle everything about it constantly call for it to be scrapped when we know that not going to happen, and call it silly names forever?

I and several others have expressed concerns about the motives of these investors offering large amounts of money into a project which has been losing money since it's inception and support for it dwindling year on year. The fact that all that has been offered from the promised £27m per county

 

[Provider]

Never really disagreed with any of that.

This country needs and should have a showcase tournament in peak time over 20 overs.

Every single other country has it, the IPL despite reservations about it on here is high quality, highly skilled and highly talented competition.

We should have something similar, whether you could fit 18 teams into a relatively small window and successfully run it and please all concerned is a different debate altogether

But to me whether it counties or franchises has never and still isn’t my main concern.

We should have a tournament in this modern era in a window with the worlds best T20 cricketers playing in it, at peak time!

I am totally and utterly in agreement that 4 tournaments too much and how we fix that problem a lot more complicated.

There is still people out there who believe county championship should be played in August and that getting children to that would grow and get them interested in the game rather than watching a 20 over tournament every day in the school holidays which is nonsense imo.

And there is still plenty people out that view short format cricket as ‘ not proper cricket’ ‘ slogging’ ‘ baseball’ etc etc

When in fact it’s highly skilled, highly talented cricketers who have developed batting, bowling and fielding skills to a whole new level

I get it, you want a part of the calendar dedicated to a white ball tournament. But surely you must see that The Hundred and all of the downsides, some of the what you have identified yourself, was not the way to go about it. There was a perfectly good domestic structure in place, that with admittedly some difficult decisions, could have catered for that.

And FWIW, I do agree that nowadays the best way of getting youngsters interested in cricket is via T20, it's just the way the world has gone. However, I certainly don't think that should mean that there's no red ball cricket played in the entirety of August meaning it has to be shoehorned in at the start of April and the end of September.

You laud this outside investment in The Hundred franchises. I see it as potentially the worst thing in a long list of bad things that The Hundred has brought to the English game.

 

[Voice of fair play]

I and several others have expressed concerns about the motives of these investors offering large amounts of money into a project which has been losing money since it's inception and support for it dwindling year on year. The fact that all that has been offered from the promised £27m per county

Yeah but tbf you expressed a opinion that investors would not be interested in the first place and they were.

You although expressed a opinion that they would not pay what the ECB wanted and they did.

Then you expressed doubts whether the sale would go through then it did

Then when all those happened, you moved on to something else, like their motives.

Tbf I totally agree with you the investors are in it for themselves all investors mostly are in anything.

But sometimes investment suits all parties and grows that industry/sport.

Time will tell whether it happens on this occasion

I get it, you want a part of the calendar dedicated to a white ball tournament. But surely you must see that The Hundred and all of the downsides, some of the what you have identified yourself, was not the way to go about it. There was a perfectly good domestic structure in place, that with admittedly some difficult decisions, could have catered for that.

And FWIW, I do agree that nowadays the best way of getting youngsters interested in cricket is via T20, it's just the way the world has gone. However, I certainly don't think that should mean that there's no red ball cricket played in the entirety of August meaning it has to be shoehorned in at the start of April and the end of September.

You laud this outside investment in The Hundred franchises. I see it as potentially the worst thing in a long list of bad things that The Hundred has brought to the English game.

Well yeah more than happy to concede plenty wrong with some aspects of The Hundred, although a bit pointless going over old ground as ship had sailed and discussion imo should be about how we can tweak and improve it now.

Tbf to your views it will have probably been better and agree and always have up to a point to try and make a T20 tournament in a designated month happen years ago.

Although would have been very difficult to have a IPL style live game every day ( an event in itself) with 18 teams.

But personally think and agree that could have been explored more before going down this route but of course none of us privy to them conversations.

Regarding the investment none of us can be 100% sure how that will pan out although I do think very good business acumen to get 145 million for a half share in a team that never existed 5/6 years ago!

The investment in the IPL seems to have been very successful and young players coming through from that has been immense

 

[Parkside]

Yeah but tbf you expressed a opinion that investors would not be interested in the first place and they were.

You although expressed a opinion that they would not pay what the ECB wanted and they did.

Then you expressed doubts whether the sale would go through then it did

Then when all those happened, you moved on to something else, like their motives.

Tbf I totally agree with you the investors are in it for themselves all investors mostly are in anything.

But sometimes investment suits all parties and grows that industry/sport.

Time will tell whether it happens on this occasion

Well yeah more than happy to concede plenty wrong with some aspects of The Hundred, although a bit pointless going over old ground as ship had sailed and discussion imo should be about how we can tweak and improve it now.

Tbf to your views it will have probably been better and agree and always have up to a point to try and make a T20 tournament in a designated month happen years ago.

Although would have been very difficult to have a IPL style live game every day ( an event in itself) with 18 teams.

But personally think and agree that could have been explored more before going down this route but of course none of us privy to them conversations.

Regarding the investment none of us can be 100% sure how that will pan out although I do think very good business acumen to get 145 million for a half share in a team that never existed 5/6 years ago!

The investment in the IPL seems to have been very successful and young players coming through from that has been immense

Yeh,I remain mystified why investors have got involved in a tournament that has haemmhoraged money from its inception with both spectator and TV viewing figures decreasing annually despite very large fees being offered to participants and an attempt to stop any other form of domestic cricket taking place apart from a development 50 over competition.
Does this not esuggest that in England the appearance of supposedly world class players in a window closed to any other form of cricket is not the panacea that you claim.
Concerns about the long term health of domestic cricket because of Franchise cricket have been aired which you choose to ignore as is the fact that the limited areas of the country where franchise cricket is accessible and the fact that tv viewing is mainly, probably to become wholly,accessible on pfv isn't conducive to widening accessibility for youngsters.
However, because many cricket lovers have these concerns and contradict your agenda you feel you have the right to label them childish.
Short form cricket is designed to entertain youngsters with adaptations to encourage big hitting -hence the fitting moniker "hit and giggle". Hardly surprising,then, that it doesn't appeal to many adults.
There are differing views without which a forum would be rather meaningless.
Is it not you who is being childish by resorting to insults because views don't match your agenda?
Toys out of the pram is the appropriate term perhaps.
Franchise cricket is only proven to be successful in India - a cricket and nation. It's too early to judge its validity in other countries.
mad, not and ,nation

 

[Voice of fair play]

Short format cricket has taken off around the world over the last 15/20 years with league after league started in all cricketing countries.

But it apparently’ doesn’t appeal to many adults’

Just utter and complete nonsense.

Absolutely no idea what agenda I could have as don’t stand personally to gain whatever happens

Like you say it’s great this forum has differing views.

 

[GordonMuchallNo1Fan]

Shite

 

[Parkside]

Short format cricket has taken off around the world over the last 15/20 years with league after league started in all cricketing countries.

But it apparently’ doesn’t appeal to many adults’

Just utter and complete nonsense.

Absolutely no idea what agenda I could have as don’t stand personally to gain whatever happens

Like you say it’s great this forum has differing views.

Read what I posted.
It's franchise cricket that I oppose. There's an appeal for T20 but many cricket loving traditionalists don't find it particularly appealing -its format is designed to attract youngsters I certainly accept but don't particularly enjoy domestic T20 but have given reasons for my concerns about Franchise cricket - it offers nothing that domestic T20 can't offer which is available to youngsters across the country and free for all to view on utube.
What I find objectionable is you appear to think you have the right to insult those that oppose your point of view.
The forum is to encourage healthy debate, resorting to invective to those who don't adhere to your perspective isn't healthy debate.
You enjoy IPL - I don't but I don't criticise for you holding that view.

 

[Fleagle]

I and several others have expressed concerns about the motives of these investors offering large amounts of money into a project which has been losing money since it's inception and support for it dwindling year on year. The fact that all that has been offered from the promised £27m per county

Always feel that the slight flaw in this argument is that it appears to assume that it’s only the investors in the franchises that are doing it to make money, and that investors in the county clubs are pure altruists who only have the long term interests of the game at heart. When you look at who the latter group includes, and I’m not suggesting you have to look particularly far either, I don’t find that assumption convincing.