Several updates have been made to squads for the men's and women's 2025 Hundred, just 24 hours before the competition is set to begin, with teenage uncapped off-spinner Farhan Ahmed one of the most notable inclusions.
This year's edition of the franchise league is set to get underway tomorrow (August 5), the day after the end of the Anderson-Tendulkar Test series. Given the proximity of the international Test summer and the competition, several adjustments have had to be made to squads to accommodate England players being rested.
Jamie Smith will not play the tournament opener between London Spirit and Oval Invincibles, and will be replaced for one match by Sussex wicketkeeper John Simpson. Ollie Pope will also not feature for the Lord's based side in their opening game, nor for their second on August 9. He will be replaced for those two matches by Dan Douthwaite.
Teenage off-spinner replaces former South Africa Test player
Teenage off-spinner and brother of England international Rehan Ahmed, Farhan, has been picked to replace Marchant De Lange for the duration of the competition at Manchester Originals. Farhan's inclusion comes two weeks after he took a hat-trick in the T20 Blast for Nottinghamshire as part of a maiden T20 five-for, becoming the second-youngest male player ever to take a hat-trick in the format.
His last minute call-up is symmetrical to his brother's early Hundred contract. Rehan was signed by Southern Brave in 2022 at the age of 17.
Last year, Farhan became the youngest-ever player to make their debut for Nottinghamshire in the County Championship, and also became the youngest bowler in the history of the competition to take a five-for in 2024. He has been backed by high profile voices, including former England spinner Graeme Swann, as having a bright international future.
Root, Brook, Crawley all set to play
While the availability of most of England's Test bowlers is still yet to be determined – Joe Root, Harry Brook and Zak Crawley have all been made available for the duration of the competition. Jacob Bethell and Ben Duckett will both also join up with Birmingham Phoenix for all their campaign, while Liam Dawson is available for London Spirit. The availabilities of Josh Tongue, Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson and Jofra Archer are still yet to be confirmed, while Chris Woakes has been ruled out of the competition with a shoulder injury he sustained fielding at The Oval.
Elsewhere, Australia's Charli Knott has replaced Deepti Sharma for the duration of The Hundred at London Spirit, after the India spinner pulled out of the competition, and Kira Chatli will replace injured former England captain Heather Knight.
Imad Wasim will temporarily replace Mitchell Santner for two games to cover for his BlackCap commitments, and Mark Chapman will cover for Rachin Ravindra for two games. Mohammed Amir will cover for Ben Dwarshuis while he finishes his international duty, and Jason Roy has replaced Faf du Plessis at Southern Brave for the whole competition.
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