INDIAN Premier League franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad is set to become the first full owners of an English Hundred team after agreeing to buy Yorkshire’s Northern Superchargers for a reported £100 million.
The Sun Group will be the third IPL-linked investor in the eight-team Hundred competition, following Reliance Industries, which owns Mumbai Indians, and RPSG, which runs Lucknow Super Giants.
However, the BBC reported on Wednesday that Sunrisers would be the first to take full ownership of a Hundred franchise.
Yorkshire chief executive Sanjay Patel confirmed the development, saying, “We are delighted to be entering into an exclusivity period with the Sun Group and will be continuing our conversations with them in the coming weeks with a view to setting the Northern Superchargers up for long-term and sustained success.”
Patel, who was previously managing director of the Hundred, added, “It is clear that they are aligned to the values and future direction of the club and will play a huge part in ensuring we can go on to achieve great success in the coming years.”
Yorkshire, a key county in English cricket, is expected to use the sale to help clear a £15m debt owed to a trust set up by chairman Colin Graves. The deal now moves into an eight-week exclusivity period for finalisation.
The Superchargers have not had much success in the Hundred, a 100-ball competition featuring both men’s and women’s teams.
However, they have notable figures, including men’s head coach Andrew Flintoff and players such as Harry Brook and Adil Rashid.
Meanwhile, IPL investors have also taken stakes in other Hundred teams. Reliance Industries has agreed to a reported £60m deal with Surrey for a 49 per cent share in Oval Invincibles, while Manchester Originals has partnered with RPSG.
If GMR, which owns IPL side Delhi Capitals and English county Hampshire, secures a 49 per cent stake in Southern Brave, it would mean four of the eight Hundred teams would have Indian investment.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), which has not commented so far, is offering 49 per cent stakes in each Hundred team while host counties retain the remaining 51 per cent.
Last week, a Silicon Valley consortium led by Indian-American Nikesh Arora, CEO of US cyber-security firm Palo Alto Networks, agreed to buy a 49 percent stake in the London Spirit franchise for a reported £145m.
Warwickshire and Glamorgan have also agreed to sell 49 per cent stakes in Birmingham Phoenix and Welsh Fire, while Trent Rockets remains available for investment.
So far, six sales have amounted to around £466m, with most of the funds to be distributed among the 18 first-class counties, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), and grassroots cricket.
The Hundred has faced criticism for taking players away from county cricket at the peak of the domestic season, but the ECB maintains that proceeds from these sales will support the traditional county game.
(With inputs from AFP)
