Deepti Sharma pulls out of Women's Hundred 2025

Deepti Sharma, who famously sealed London Spirit’s maiden Hundred title with a straight six in last year’s final at Lord’s, has withdrawn from the 2025 season to manage her workload. The Indian all-rounder is currently in England as part of India’s ongoing tour but has opted for a short break amid a demanding recent schedule.

With the 50-over World Cup set to be held in India later this year, Deepti has chosen to step away from her £36,000 contract to focus on rest and preparation. She has been replaced by Australian all-rounder Charli Knott. London Spirit will see several changes this season, both on and off the field.

Charlie Dean is set to lead the side in the absence of Heather Knight, who is sidelined due to injury. Grace Harris has come in for Meg Lanning, while Chris Liddle replaces Ashley Noffke as head coach.

Deepti’s withdrawal leaves the Hundred without any Indian players under contract this year. The BCCI does not grant No-Objection Certificates (NOCs) to active male players for overseas leagues, and several Indian women cricketers either went undrafted or made themselves unavailable due to workload management.

Ashleigh Gardner, David Willey to lead Trent Rockets teams

Meanwhile, in other developments across the league, Trent Rockets have confirmed that Ashleigh Gardner will captain the women’s side this season. Last month, Nat Sciver-Brunt stepped down from the role to reduce her workload after taking over England’s captaincy. Gardner expressed her gratitude, calling it an honour to succeed Sciver-Brunt.

On the men’s side, David Willey will captain Trent Rockets after replacing Lewis Gregory, who has moved to Manchester Originals following his release. Willey, a £200,000 signing in the draft, brings extensive short-format leadership experience, having previously captained Northamptonshire, Yorkshire, and Northern Superchargers. He spent the last two seasons at Welsh Fire.

Each Hundred team is expected to finalise four wildcard signings, two for the men’s side and two for the women’s, next week. These additions will be based on performances in the ongoing T20 Blast.

Birmingham Phoenix have already made a move ahead of the wildcard draft, bringing in Nottinghamshire’s Freddie McCann as an injury replacement for Derbyshire seamer Harry Moore, who is out with a back stress fracture.

The Hundred will run from August 5 to 31 and is being viewed as a transitional season before the ECB hands operational responsibility for the eight teams over to their host counties and new private investors ahead of the 2026 edition.