Welsh Fire

Welsh Fire (Welsh: Tân Cymreig) are a franchise 100-ball cricket side based in the city of Cardiff. The team represents the historic counties of Glamorgan, Gloucestershire and Somerset in the newly founded competition called The Hundred,[1] which took place for the first time during the 2021 English and Welsh cricket season. Both the men's and women's teams play their home games at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.

Welsh Fire
Tân Cymreig
Personnel
CaptainTBA
(men's team)
Tammy Beaumont
(women's team)
CoachMichael Hussey
(men's team)
Gareth Breese
(women's team)
Overseas player(s)Haris Rauf
Glenn Phillips
Shaheen Afridi
(men's team)
Laura Harris
Shabnim Ismail
Hayley Matthews
(women's team)
Team information
Colours   
Founded2019
Home groundSophia Gardens
Capacity16,000
History
No. of titles0
The Hundred title wins0
The Hundred game wins6
(Men's team: 3)
(Women's team: 3)
Official websiteWelsh Fire

History
Sophia Gardens in Cardiff

Welsh Fire was founded in June 2019 as one of eight teams to take part in the inaugural season of The Hundred. The team was jointly run by Glamorgan, Somerset and Gloucestershire County Cricket Clubs. It was reported that the side might be renamed as Western Fire, to allay concerns in Somerset and Gloucestershire that they were not sufficiently represented by the side, but this did not come to fruition.[2]

In July 2019, the team announced that former South Africa and India coach, and current Royal Challengers Bangalore coach Gary Kirsten had been appointed as the men's team coach.[3] The women's side was due to be managed by Matthew Mott, a former Glamorgan coach and the current Australia women's team coach, but he withdrew and was replaced by his assistant coach, Mark O'Leary.[4]

The inaugural Hundred draft took place in October 2019 and saw the Fire claim Jonny Bairstow as their headline men's draftee, and Katie George as the women's headliner. They are joined by Somerset wicketkeeper-batsman Tom Banton, Glamorgan batsman Colin Ingram, and England batter Bryony Smith.[5]

Steve Smith and Mitchell Starc were selected as the flagship £125,000 signings in the first round and are two of the side's three overseas players. With Ingram and Banton already occupying the £100,000 slots, Welsh Fire sat out the second round. Ravi Rampaul and Ben Duckett were selected in the third round for £75,000 and Simon Harmer, along with Afghanistan's Qais Ahmed (the team's third overseas player), were bought for £60,000 in the fourth. Liam Plunkett and Ryan ten Doeschate were the picks in the fifth round for £50,000 and Gloucestershire duo David Payne and Ryan Higgins were selected in the sixth round for £40,000. Danny Briggs and Leus du Plooy complete the squad, having both been bought for £30,000 in the final round. The final place in the squad will go to an outstanding performer in next season's Vitality Blast 20-over competition.

Australian Meg Lanning was the next pick for the ladies' team.

Honours

Men's honours

The Hundred

  • 7th place: 2021 (highest finish)

Women's honours

The Hundred

  • 8th place: 2021, 2022 (highest finish)

Ground
The ground's main entrance
Main article: Sophia Gardens Cricket Ground

Both the Fire men's and women's sides play at the home of Glamorgan County Cricket Club, Sophia Gardens Cricket Ground, in the west of Cardiff city centre. The women's side had been due to play some matches at Gloucestershire's Bristol County Ground and Somerset's County Ground, Taunton but both teams were brought together at the same ground as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Players

Men's side
  • Bold denotes players with international caps.
  •  *  denotes a player who is unavailable for rest of the season.
S/N Name Nat. Date of birth (age) Batting style Bowling style Notes
Batters
23Glenn PhillipsNew Zealand (1996-12-06) 6 December 1996Right-handedRight-arm off breakOverseas player
32Ollie PopeEngland (1998-01-02) 2 January 1998Right-handed—
—Stephen EskinaziEngland (1994-03-28) 28 March 1994Right-handed—
All-rounders
—Tom AbellEngland (1994-03-05) 5 March 1994Right-handedRight-arm medium
—Dan DouthwaiteEngland (1997-02-08) 8 February 1997Right-handedRight-arm fast-medium
—Roelof van der MerweNetherlands[lower-alpha 1] (1984-12-31) 31 December 1984Right-handedSlow left-arm orthodox
—David WilleyEngland (1990-02-28) 28 February 1990Left-handedLeft-arm fast-medium
Wicketkeepers
33Joe ClarkeEngland (1996-05-26) 26 May 1996Right-handed—
51Jonny BairstowEngland (1989-09-26) 26 September 1989Right-handed—Centrally Contracted player
Pace bowlers
7David PayneEngland (1991-02-15) 15 February 1991Right-handedLeft-arm fast-medium
9George ScrimshawEngland (1998-02-10) 10 February 1998Right-handedRight-arm fast
14Jake BallEngland (1991-03-14) 14 March 1991Right-handedRight-arm fast-medium
—Haris RaufPakistan (1993-11-07) 7 November 1993Right-handedRight-arm fastOverseas player
—Shaheen AfridiPakistan (2000-04-06) 6 April 2000Left-handedLeft-arm fastOverseas player
Spin bowlers
  1. Van der Merwe has also played international cricket for South Africa.

    Men's captains
    • Italics denote a temporary captain when the main captain was unavailable.
    Name Period
    England Jonny Bairstow2021
    England Ben Duckett2021
    England Josh Cobb2022

    Women's side
    • Bold denotes players with international caps.
    •  *  denotes a player who is unavailable for rest of the season.
    S/N Name Nat. Date of birth (age) Batting style Bowling style Notes
    Batters
    —Sophia DunkleyEngland (1998-07-16) 16 July 1998Right-handedRight-arm leg break
    —Georgia ElwissEngland (1991-05-31) 31 May 1991Right-handedRight-arm medium
    —Laura HarrisAustralia (1990-08-18) 18 August 1990Right-handed—Overseas player
    All-rounders
    25Alex GriffithsWales (2002-06-12) 12 June 2002Right-handedRight-arm medium
    50Hayley MatthewsCricket West Indies (1998-03-19) 19 March 1998Right-handedRight-arm off breakOverseas player
    Wicketkeepers
    6Sarah BryceScotland (2000-01-08) 8 January 2000Right-handed—
    12Tammy BeaumontEngland (1991-03-11) 11 March 1991Right-handed—Captain
    Pace bowlers
    —Freya DaviesEngland (1995-10-27) 27 October 1995Right-handedRight-arm medium
    —Shabnim IsmailSouth Africa (1988-10-05) 5 October 1988Left-handedRight-arm fast-mediumOverseas player
    Spin bowlers
    8Claire NicholasWales (1986-09-08) 8 September 1986Right-handedRight-arm off break
    65Alex HartleyEngland (1993-09-06) 6 September 1993Right-handedSlow left-arm orthodox

      Women's captains
      • Italics denote a temporary captain when the main captain was unavailable.
      Name Period
      England Sophie Luff2021
      England Tammy Beaumont2022–

      Seasons

      Group stages
      Season Women's team Men's team
      Pos Pld W L T NR Pts NRR Pos Pld W L T NR Pts NRR
      20218th826004−1.0177th835006−0.827
      20228th615002−0.6818th808000−1.442

      See also

        References
        1. "The Hundred: Team-by-team guides, coach details and venues". Sporting Life. 21 October 2019. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
        2. "Cardiff Hundred team may drop 'Welsh' from name in favour of 'Western Fire'". ESPN.com. 30 July 2019. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
        3. www.uprisevsi.co.uk, upriseVSI. "England and Local Cricket Stars Align for Welsh Fire". Glamorgan Cricket. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
        4. "The Hundred: Meet the Welsh Fire". BBC Sport. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
        5. "The Hundred: Central contract and local icon 'drafts' explained". ESPNcricinfo. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 4 October 2019.

        Further reading
        Wikimedia Commons has media related to Glamorgan County Cricket Club.
        This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.