THE HUNDRED
Whether the franchise shifts from the black colour of the Originals to the blue of the Super Giants is still yet to be seen © Getty
The Hundred franchise Manchester Originals will be renamed to Manchester Super Giants from 2026, Cricbuzz understands.
Sanjiv Goenka, the owner of the Lucknow Super Giants and Durban Super Giants, had acquired a stake worth 107 million GBP in the franchise, earlier in February this year. Whether the franchise shifts from the black colour of the Originals to the blue of the Super Giants is still yet to be seen.
Last year, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) decided to privatise The Hundred and attract external investment to capitalize on the interest of the competition with the Manchester-based franchise heading to the RPSG Group, which is owned by Goenka. It was also reported that Goenka successfully fended off interest from two other unnamed IPL franchises to bag the Originals.
Apart from the two cricket teams, Goenka also owns Mohun Bagan FC an Indian football team based in Kolkata.
The Manchester Originals men’s squad includes Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Heinrich Klaasen and recently even roped in James Anderson. The women’s team features Sophie Ecclestone, Beth Mooney, Amelia Kerr, and Deandra Dottin with both rosters packed with power and talent.
The Originals’ men’s team finished runners-up in 2022 and 2023 while the women’s team has not entered the playoffs in the history of the tournament so far.
At the time of finalizing the deal, Goenka had seen a high potential in coming together with Lancashire Cricket and delivering good quality cricket for a long period of time. “We respect the legacy of Lancashire Cricket and we welcome Manchester Originals to our RPSG family,” Goenka said. “We are committed to developing a deep bond with the players, support team and the whole community at large. We believe in excellence and see a huge potential to deliver good quality cricket for generations to come.”
Manchester Originals Chair, James Sheridan, believed that partnering with RPSG Group meant that they could compete at a much higher level with the IPL as the inspiration.
“We want to offer our fans an experience never before seen in English cricket – looking to the IPL, and other major sports, for inspiration, as we take our match day and fan experience to a completely different level. Whether in stadia or via digital channels, Manchester will be the team to follow in The Hundred as we will look to bring the world’s top cricket stars, both female and male, to Manchester every August and provide sporting entertainment of the highest level to the people of Manchester and the wider North West.”
Cricbuzz also reached out to Lancashire Cricket Club who are yet to confirm the developments.
© Cricbuzz
