The time is upon us again for the finest sub-T20 tournament in the world. Indeed, The Hundred kicks off again with Southern Brave versus Welsh Fire. For anyone looking to get into the tournament, you absolutely must find a team to irrationally root for. Now, you could support the geographically closest team to you, but what fun is it being that boring?
Instead I present the comprehensive guide to picking a team in The Hundred for the fewest available cricketing reasons.
If you prefer the finer things in life: London Spirit
Yes, London Spirit were pretty rubbish in 2021, but if you’re looking for some glitz and glamour then this is the place to be. Playing at Lord’s, perhaps sport’s poshest venue, you are well at home if you fancy a quieter place to enjoy the action. You won’t be out of place sipping your favourite brand of sparkling wine, whether it be from the depths of France or the back of the Big Tesco.
On top of that, London Spirit have the fanciest crisp sponsor by far. On top of their classy royal blue kit stands the proud name of Tyrell’s, the official crisp of adult dinner parties nationwide. The fanciness even extends to the pitch somewhat. London Spirit until recently had the claim of having both England men’s and women’s captain. Whilst Eoin Morgan has stepped away from the title, you can still see him and Heather Knight in all their importance on a nice night in North London.
If you loved your gap year: Oval Invincibles
Yah mate yah. The unofficial tagline of South London’s offerings. Everything about the Oval Invincibles screams ‘your hipster mate who rents in Clapham’. Decked out in a rather loud mint green, even their kit feels like a statement against their London rivals.
On top of this, they absolutely have the players for this vibe. Tom Curran is the student DJ fresh back from Thailand. Sam Curran is the guy who pretends to be a fresher every year. Sam Billings tells you all that he’s not actually that posh. Alice Capsey is an actual teenager.
Get your cords on, grab your bucket hat and sunnies, come down to the home of vibes in South London.
If you like ‘big fellas’: Southern Brave
Indeed, the south coast is bringing the muscle. Tim David. Marcus Stoinis. One team. Get ready for the slightly overenthusiastic fawning from the commentary about their raw power.
If you love big blokes hitting big shots. This is your team. Of course though, being a ‘big fella’ is a state of mind. It just means you can give it a proper bash. It would be insane to overlook the proper bashing power of Sophia Dunkley and Danni Wyatt.
This is the team for your IPL commentary teams obsessed with big muscles and tiny shirts.
If you can’t move beyond the 90s: Manchester Originals
Manchester, Britpop, mad for it. Quite simply if your Spotify Unwrapped is just a bunch of flawed and morally questionable artists from Manchester then this is the place to be.
When The Hundred started selling bucket hats, it can only truly have been for the benefit of one team. The bucket hat is Manny heritage. It’s a state of mind, a state of being. Even the clean black and grey kit fits the ‘cool’ vibe.
On top of this, they have the perfect player to facilitate a wonderful Oasis pun. Indeed, this is the season where something is wrong with the game if Old Trafford do not repeatedly break out into a rendition of ‘Don’t Look Back in Hasaranga’.
If you just want happiness: Birmingham Phoenix
If you wear bright orange and are sponsored by Butterkist Popcorn, you are the designated happy and fun team. I don’t make the rules, it’s just how it is.
This is only amplified by Mooen Ali captaining the men’s team. Mo is lovely. Mo is chill. Mo is one of the nicest guys in cricket. More of the team should be like Mo.
Beyond Mo, there are more good vibes. Imran Tahir last year unleashed his inner child after taking a hat-trick. Issy Wong has previously worn the number 95 to pay tribute to Lightning McQueen. By and large this is the happy, loving family of The Hundred.
If you’re a bit more traditional: Trent Rockets
Hear me out on this one. It might seem like a hard sell to cricket traditionalists to back the team who are basically dressed like a packet of Skips, but there might be something in this.
Something about Trent Rockets feels old-school. They’re filled with county stalwarts, and have impressively managed to hold onto a remarkable amount of the Nottinghamshire County setup. This might be the team for you if you raise an eyebrow at a new competition.
If you’re looking to be a bit difficult you’ll probably also like that the Rockets have Alex Hales, the outcast of the England setup. If you’re the type of person who continues to argue Hales deserves another chance, you’ll probably like it here.
If you’re Northern and Proud: Northern Superchargers
Now I know I said this wasn’t going to be about geography, so this one requires some talking.
When I think of Northern Superchargers, I think of the meme from last summer of Geoffrey Boycott wearing a NS cap. I think of northern England players who randomly spawn every summer to get their career of 11 England caps and at least one T20i Player of the Match award thrown in there.
If being Northern is an integral part of your identity, this is a no brainer. The Popchips are for you.
If you want to seem odd (or are Welsh): Welsh Fire
I’ll be honest. Even Adam Zampa and Tammy Beaumont cannot recover the absolutely dreadful vibes of Welsh Fire.
With a squad containing Joe Clarke and Ben Duckett, it’s fair to say that this isn’t the most readily likeable group. On top of that, I can only remember from last year’s tournament how jarring it was having basically no crowds at games in Wales. There were no vibes.
Obviously if you’re Welsh they’re probably your team, but not too sure why else they would be.
The Author of this piece is an Oval Invincibles fan. He thinks that if he laughs about the posh boy vibes they give off that he can escape the ire. He should not.
