Cricket stars with links to Felsted School in north Essex will be taking to the crease in front of millions of fans in the 2022 instalment of new men’s and women’s cricket tournament The Hundred.
The professional 100-ball tournament launched last year and was instantly popular for its fast-paced format and high drama. The follow-up in 2022 looks set to be just as exciting, and will feature a coach and two former pupils from Felsted among the line-up of eight men’s and women’s teams from across England and Wales competing to win The Hundred.
Former Felsted student Emma Jones, who plays professionally for Essex, was part of The Oval Invincibles squad that lifted the women’s trophy in last year’s The Hundred, and she takes her place in the same team again this summer. Meanwhile Sussex player and Felsted’s Head of Girls’ Cricket Carla Rudd, will again turn out for The Southern Brave, the team The Invincibles beat in 2021’s nail-biting final.
‘The Hundred is going from strength to strength,’ says Carla, who has played county cricket for Sussex since the age of 11. ‘It creates such a buzz that I’m sure even more girls will want to get involved in the game.’
The men’s competition will feature another former Felsted student, Jordan Cox, who was last year named ‘Player of the Match’ for his part in Kent’s victorious Vitality Blast Final. In this year’s The Hundred Jordan will play for The Oval Invincibles.
‘Everyone involved in the development of Emma and Jordan at Felsted are so proud of their selection in The Hundred for the second year,’ says Jason Gallian, Director of Cricket at Felsted School, who himself enjoyed a 15-year career in test and county cricket for Lancashire, Nottinghamshire and Essex. ‘And Carla continues to be a fabulous role model to all our cricketers with her professionalism and enthusiasm for the game. She remains one of the best wicket keepers in the country and we are so pleased to have her as a member of our school community.’
Emma and Jordan are just two of the many professional cricketers who began their careers while at Felsted, including county and international players Derek Pringle, John Stephenson, Nick Knight, Tim Phillips and Will Buttleman. Cricket for boys and girls is well established at Felsted and school teams are successful at local, regional and national competition, and elite coaching programmes are available for talented young players.
