Kane Williamson and top players withdraw from The Hundred; Lungi Ngidi sets for Welsh Fire

New Zealand cricket team captain Kane Williamson has pulled out of The Hundred tournament due to his elbow injury, where he was going to play for Birmingham Phoenix. According to ANI reports, Kane Williamson will now be assigned as a mentor with Birmingham phoenix in The Hundred as he wants his team to beat India in World Test Championship(WTC) final.

The decision to withdraw has been taken consecutively twice by the spin bowler as he also pulled out from the ODI series, in the beginning of IPL 2021 against Bangladesh due to a related reason. Now, Finn Allen, the New Zealand batsman is standing up in line to replace Williamson as he scored 215 runs in eight innings for Lanschire, according to ESPNcricinfo.

Who else has withdrawn from The Hundred along with Kane Williamson?

Adding more names to the withdrawal list, Pakistan bowler Shaheen Afridi has also pulled out from Birmingham Phoenix due to his other international commitments i.e., West Indies Tournament clashing with The Hundred. In the meantime, South Africa bowler Lungi Ngidi is going to get ready for Welsh Fire and upcoming five matches. Lungi Ngidi will also follow their limited over tournament to Ireland as a replacement for Jhye Richardson.

Kieron Pollard, Captain of West Indies cricket team, is also expected to miss the beginning of The Hundred as he has already committed to play against Australia and Pakistan in T20I series. ESPNcricinfo says that Glenn Phillips can now become his replacement in the tournament.

Australian fast bowler, Nathan Coulter Nile will be replaced by Wahab Riaz, Pakistan left-arm seamer due to Nathan's 14-day quarantine on return and the tours to Bangladesh and Caribbean. Former Ausralian Cricket team captain, David Andrew Warner and all rounder Marcus Stoinis have also withdrawn from the tournament , where they were set to play Southern Brave. 

Teams may have further withrawals of top players in The Hundred due to ongoing coronavirus pandemic and packed international matches schedule.

When and How The Hundred will begin?

The Hundred will begin from July 22 with a match between women cricket teams i.e., Oval Invincibles and Welsh Fire at 6.30 pm. The last match of the tournament will be played on August 22, between Manchester Originals and Welsh Fire, at Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester.