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Welsh Fire Retain 19 Players Including England Stars Tammy Beaumont And Jonny Bairstow

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By David Williams

England star Tammy Beaumont believes Welsh Fire Women can build on last year’s breakthrough season when they begin their fourth campaign of The Hundred this summer.

Beaumont is one of 19 players who have been retained for the new season across the men’s and women’s squads based in Cardiff.

Jonny Bairstow, Beaumont, Haris Rauf and Hayley Matthews will all be back in action at Sophia Gardens in The Hundred next season.

International trio Sophia Dunkley, Shabnim Ismail and Georgia Elwiss are among the names returning as well as David Willey and Joe Clarke.

It means across both the Welsh Fire men’s and women’s teams, nine spots remain to be filled at The Hundred Draft which will take place on Wednesday 20 March.

Across both competitions, 137 players have been retained in total, meaning 75 spots remain to be filled at The Hundred Draft.

England stars Amy Jones, Dawid Malan and Jason Roy, as well as a host of international players, will be up for grabs.

In the women’s competition, where the three highest pay bands have received a significant boost, there will be seven spots to fill in the top £50,000 bracket.

Fire Women’s captain Tammy Beaumont said: “We had a great tournament last year, making the Eliminator, so it is really exciting that we have managed to keep hold of eight of that squad.

“The Hundred is a great tournament to play in and the competition was incredibly tight in 2023.

“I’m confident we can add some more talent in The Hundred Draft and our big aim is going further this season and making it all the way.”

Welsh Fire’s season in the fourth year of The Hundred gets underway at Emirates Old Trafford on Thursday 25 July.

The tournament will run for four weeks, with the finals to be held at Lord’s on August 18.

Beaumont and Tom Abell will lead out their respective women’s and men’s teams for their home opener at Sophia Gardens against Oval Invincibles on Sunday 28 July.

Glamorgan star Chris Cooke has also been retained and said: “I think we made great progress last year as a squad and I can’t wait to meet back up with everyone to get going again.”

Willey said: “Last year was my first season with the Welsh Fire and I really enjoyed my time in Cardiff.

“The management put together a great group of guys who really enjoyed playing for each other so I’m delighted to be back again for this year’s Hundred.”

Retained Players

Welsh Fire Women: Hayley Matthews (O), Sophia Dunkley, Shabnim Ismail (O), Tammy Beaumont, Georgia Elwiss, Sarah Bryce, Freya Davies, Emily Windsor

Welsh Fire Men: Jonny Bairstow, David Willey, Joe Clarke, Haris Rauf (O), Tom Abell, Glenn Phillips, David Payne, Luke Wells, Roelof Van der Merwe, Stephen Eskinazi, Chris Cooke

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