The Hundred, a brainchild of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has taken the necessary first step towards reducing the wage gap between men's and women's cricket. The organisers have announced that the much-awaited tournament will feature equal prize money for men's and women's teams.
Meanwhile, the eight new city-based teams will play in The Hundred over five weeks in the summer of 2020. The white-ball competition will be 100 balls per innings, with a change of ends after ten deliveries. Also, a bowler can bowl five or ten deliveries at a stretch with a maximum of 20 balls per game. A 25-ball powerplay start for each team.while two fielders can field outside of the initial 30-yard circle during the powerplay. Teams will also be able to call timeouts as seen in the Indian Premier League.
Read More: IPL 2020: All you need to know about the tournament
The wage gap in cricket has been a longstanding issue with many cricketers speaking about it. After a lot of consideration, ECB's has taken the first step of their long-term commitment to making cricket a gender-balanced sport. A total prize budget of £600,000 will be split equally between the men's and the women's competitions.
Beth Barrett-Wild, the head of the Hundred women's competition seemed extremely happy with the move and said that it is the perfect reflection of what the women cricketers bring to the table. She also said that this is a positive step in ECB's goal of making cricket as a professional career option for the women's and the girls.
"We're really proud of our movement towards making cricket a gender-balanced sport and whilst we're aware there is more to do in this space, this is an important step in the right direction. It's recognition for the women's players and the huge value they bring to the Hundred," Beth said.
Makes sense doesn't it!
— The Hundred (@thehundred) March 4, 2020
Read More: South Africa's ODI squad for the three-match series against India
The announcement is a replication of a similar move by Cricket Australia, which equalised the prize money on offer in the men's and women's editions of the Big Bash League in 2017. The Hundred 2020 will get underway from July 17 and will run till August 15.
