What is The Hundred? A Quick Guide to Cricket’s Fastest and Most Unpredictable Format

The Hundred, one of the unique and fast-paced 100-ball professional cricket tournaments, has completed its five editions, and the 6th edition of the tournament is all set to begin from 21st July 2026 to 16th August 2026. There will be 36 matches in the Men’s Hundred 2026 and 34 matches in the Women’s Hundred 2026.

Contents

Organized by the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board), it is designed to be played in the 100-ball format rather than the overs format, which has traditionally been played for more than 70 years. One game of The Hundred is played in 2.5 hours, completing a total of 200 balls in one contest.

It is played in eight cities across the United Kingdom. Cities like Nottingham, London, Cardiff, Manchester, Birmingham, Southampton, and Leeds are where the league is played, and each of them has its own separate franchise.

Facts You Need to Know Before Watching The Hundred

Each innings consists of 100 balls, which makes it unique compared to other leagues that are played in the traditional T20 format of 20 overs per innings. In each over, there is a set of five balls rather than six balls per over.

The captain of the team can choose the bowler to bowl five or ten consecutive balls from one end. After every 10 balls, the fielding side has to change ends. Each bowler can bowl a maximum of 20 balls per match.

The powerplay of the innings is for the first 25 balls, which restricts the fielding team to having only two fielders outside the 30-yard circle.

The most interesting fact of the league is that when a bowler bowls a no-ball, traditionally one run as a penalty is given to the batting team, but in The Hundred format, 2 runs are given as a penalty to the batting side, along with a free hit.

Tournament Structure Guide

The league is played between eight men’s and eight women’s franchises. The games are played during the peak summer in England, and usually, on one day, two matches are played: one for the men’s competition and one for the women’s.

So, if you buy one ticket, you’ll be able to watch two matches in one day, as the Men’s Hundred and Women’s Hundred are played in parallel. Teams compete in a round-robin format, and the team that ends on top progresses directly to the play-offs.