With the England and Wales Cricket Board‘s new cricket tournament The Hundred on the horizon, excitement is building for the 100-ball competition involving both men’s and women’s.

Former England international and T20 World Cup winner Ryan Sidebottom joined Betfred to preview the new format tournament.

“I am very excited by this new brand and the new concept,” Sidebottom explained. “The Hundred is something totally new and out there.

“I remember playing when T20 was going to be announced and there was a lot of scepticism and players were asking, ‘how is this going to go and what’s going to happen?’ It’s all the unknown, but you see now that T20 is a global brand. It’s huge all over the world and growing in many countries that you wouldn’t specifically say play cricket.”

The tournament, which was due to launch in 2020 before being postponed due to the pandemic, will be aired on Sky Sports, with 18 fixtures, including both finals, to be simulcast by the BBC.

He continued: “Now, The Hundred is coming around thick and fast, and it’s starting on Wednesday. Everyone’s excited and social media has been going off the charts. 

“It’s been great because there’s been so many people talking about this brand. It’s not all been positive but the proof is in the pudding and people are talking about it.

“You’ve got some amazing players – girls and boys. The women’s game is growing globally and it’s phenomenal. It will be an opportunity for the first time for a lot of these players in the women’s game that have never been on TV, and they must be so excited.

“You’ve got England representatives, world-class cricketers, overseas players, young and talented players, so for me, a lot can’t go wrong.”