Richard Mann has tipped the last two winners of The Hundred, and is going for the hat-trick in his preview of the 2026 edition.
Cricket tips: The Hundred
2pts London Spirit to win The Hundred at 7/1 (Betfred)
It’s all change in The Hundred this year, with big Indian investment meaning significant squad churn across the board and a number of quite bizarre team name changes.
The franchise formerly known as Oval Invincibles have won the last three editions of the tournament, but they have since been bought out, rebranded and renamed as MI London.
Tom Moody and Sam Billings, who formed such a brilliant partnership as head coach and captain, have gone, as has star batsman Jordan Cox, and they look very short at 10/3 in the outright market given they were tipped on these pages to win last year’s tournament at 7/2.
To my mind, they just don’t look a better outfit 12 months on, and certainly not as settled, with the need for West Indians Nicholas Pooran and Sherfane Rutherford to settle in quickly a must.
Pooran was disappointing at this year’s IPL, while fellow newbie James Vince didn’t fire for Southern Brave last summer. Ollie Pope would be a concern in this shorter format, too, meaning the batting, though evidently full of potential, has questions to answer.
That’s not to say there isn’t quality there, of course there is, and Rashid Khan and the Curran brothers will ensure the bowling remains strong and largely reliable.
However, I place great importance on franchise pedigree, and while all of these teams will need to overcome squad churn, this has been a settled outfit over the last few years, something that gave them such a significant advantage over the competition. That has now gone.
As such, I can’t touch MI London as favourites.
Rockets batting set to fire
Billings has switched to Trent Rockets, and I’d prefer the Nottingham-based franchise at current odds of 7/1.
Billings is an outstanding leader who will help form a fearsome batting unit that also features big-hitters Fin Allen and Tim David, plus Ben Duckett and Tom Banton.
They have all-rounders in Lewis Gregory and Craig Overton, the latter having made the headlines in the T20 Blast in recent days, while the bowling has bags of experience in the form of Matt Henry, Mitchell Santner and David Payne.
The one nagging doubt about the Rockets is potential conditions at Trent Bridge, with the pitch not as flat, particularly in The Hundred, over the last few years as we had come to expect.
We are currently enjoying a scorching summer and spin has been a big factor on this ground in the T20 Blast, with scores coming down, and I’m not sure such conditions would suit this batting line-up which really wants to cut loose on good pitches.
London Spirit the best bet in The Hundred
As such, at the same price (7/1), I’ve landed on LONDON SPIRIT to claim outright glory.
Spirit have kept their name, but thankfully not a lot else, and Andy Flower takes over as head coach after the 58-year-old ruled out a return to working with England to reprise a role he previously carried out with such distinction throughout the most successful period English cricket has enjoyed in modern times.
Flower’s CV is unmatched, and he is currently in charge of Royal Challengers Bengaluru who celebrated back-to-back IPL title wins in the spring. Whatever the format, it seems Flower has the golden touch.
And he’s assembled a strong squad here, full of power with the bat and variety with the ball.
Liam Livingstone has a wealth of franchise experience and will captain the side, which couldn’t come at a better time given he has averaged 50.66 with the bat in the Blast this summer to go with his 12 wickets with the ball.
"Andy Flower is the best coach in the world." 🙌
— Stick to Cricket (@StickToCricket) June 6, 2026
Huge praise from Liam Livingstone on the RCB and ex-England coach! 🫡 pic.twitter.com/KBUdP583KF
He’ll form a potent spin attack with Australian Adam Zampa and fellow leg spinner Mason Crane, with David Willey and Adam Milne offering a wealth of experience and cutting edge with the new ball.
I’m not crazy about Jonny Bairstow opening the batting, but James Rew could yet edge him out for the second opening spot alongside South Africa gun Lhuan-dre Pretorius. With compatriot Dewald Brevis just about the hottest ticket in T20 cricket right now, and James Coles a star of the future, the middle order looks outstanding.
Jamie Overton and Willey are two fine all-rounders to balance the XI, and like most Andy Flower sides, this has a look of a good fielding outfit, with some terrific athletes and solid catchers in there.
Looking at the batting, perhaps this line-up would prefer a better surface than Lord’s has served up in recent times, but Flower’s teams are usually pragmatic ones, and I reckon Spirit tick more boxes than any other franchise.
At the current odds, they rate the value.
As batting line-ups go, the one Sunrisers Leeds will send onto the park will take some beating, and the likes of Ryan Rickelton, Mitchell Marsh and hometown hero Harry Brook are tailor-made for Headingley and the high-scoring ground it has become.
Once again, the bowling might have its limitations, for all the signing of Pakistan leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed looks good business, and it could be a similar story for Birmingham Phoenix whose once New Zealand-dominated seam attack has gone, along with star man Livingstone.
I fancy Manchester Super Giants to fare better than Phoenix, Aiden Markram promising to prove an excellent signing as captain as he teams up with compatriot Heinrich Klaasen in a batting line-up that could open up with Jos Buttler and Tim Seifert.
If Gus Atkinson can stay fit, the bowling would appear to stack up well, with Sonny Baker impressive in this year’s T20 Blast, Liam Dawson ultra-reliable, and Noor Ahmad a genuine wicket-taker in the middle overs.
I like the Super Giants a lot, and given their current price of 15/2, gave most consideration to them and the Rockets before ultimately landing on Spirit in the outright market.
The same cannot be said for perennial underachievers Welsh Fire, for all Jordan Cox should improve a batting unit that more generally looks a better fit for 50-over cricket.
I don’t have masses of enthusiasm for Southern Brave, and while a bowling attack featuring Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid should win them matches, it won't be enough to see them go all the way.
Posted at 11:35 BST on 17/07/26
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