The Hundred 2023: Meet Oval Invincibles as Alice Capsey & Saqib Mahmood name players to watch
- Published
Will Jacks (left) and Alice Capsey (right) add firepower to the Oval Invincibles' batting line-ups
The Hundred returns on 1 August, so how are Oval Invincibles shaping up ahead of the third season?
BBC Sport has spoken to a player from their men's and women's teams and worked with data analysts CricViz to assess Invincibles' chances and key players.
Who are they?
Ground: The Kia Oval, London
Men's captain: Sam Billings
Men's coach: Tom Moody
Women's captain: Dane van Niekerk
Women's coach: Jon Batty
Previous record: Men: 2021 - fourth; 2022 - fifth; Women: 2021 - champions; 2022 - champions
When are Oval Invincibles' fixtures?
Oval Invincibles fixtures in the 2023 Hundred | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Team | Date | Time (all times BST) | Venue |
London Spirit | 2 August | Women at 15:00, Men at 18:30 | Lord's |
Welsh Fire | 6 August | Women at 14:30, Men at 18:00 | Kia Oval |
Manchester Originals | 9 August | Women at 15:00, Men at 18:30 | Kia Oval |
Northern Superchargers | 11 August | Women at 15:00, Men at 18:30 | Clean Slate Headingley |
Birmingham Phoenix | 13 August | Women at 14:30, Men at 18:00 | Edgbaston |
London Spirit | 15 August | Women at 15:00, Men at 18:30 | Kia Oval |
Southern Brave | 19 August | Women at 14:30, Men at 18:00 | Ageas Bowl |
Trent Rockets | 21 August | Women at 15:00, Men at 18;30 | Kia Oval |
BBC coverage: Games in bold (see time column) are live on BBC TV & iPlayer, with every match having ball-by-ball commentary on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds. The BBC Sport website and app will have live text updates, the TV/radio coverage, in-play video clips plus contributions from Hundred super fan community and all the best stats. |
How are they shaping up?
West Indies spinner Sunil Narine returns, having taken 18 wickets in the first two years of the competition
BBC Sport has collaborated with data analysts CricViz to look at the strengths and weaknesses of each side.
Men's team
The Invincibles have plenty of firepower to exploit the small boundaries at The Oval. Will Jacks and Jason Roy should provide fast starts at the top, with left-hander Sam Curran and South Africa's Heinrich Klaasen capable of providing some big hitting during the middle overs.
Kent duo Sam Billings and Jordan Cox bring added depth to the batting alongside all-rounder Tom Curran who scored quickly at the back end last year. The form of Roy and Billings, both during the last Hundred season and since, may be of concern.
Quality and variety runs through their bowling attack, with spinners Sunil Narine and Adam Zampa capable of turning the ball both ways and bamboozling batters.
The Curran brothers offer plenty of variation, with Sam's left-arm angle and mixture of yorkers and quick bouncers complemented by right-armer Tom's slower balls and hard lengths.
Their domestic bowling depth may come into question after losing Topley during the off season as well as Saqib Mahmood through injury recently. Surrey quick Gus Atkinson and Durham leg-spinner Nathan Sowter could be called upon after impressing on the domestic circuit this season.
Women's team
Opting for continuity leading into this year's competition, the Invincibles have re-signed Suzie Bates and skipper Van Niekerk in the draft and kept together the vast majority of the squad who delivered back-to-back titles.
The loss of Shabnim Ismail to Welsh Fire will be sorely felt, coupled with the prolonged injury to Tash Farrant. It means extra responsibility will be placed on the shoulders of all-rounder Marizanne Kapp in the pace bowling department. She had a stellar Women's Premier League in March with the ball and shows no sign of slowing down at 33.
Poster child of the Hundred and 18-year-old superstar Alice Capsey will be key with both bat and ball, having excelled yet again in international cricket and in the WPL for the Jon Batty-led Delhi Capitals. Her aggressive brand of cricket will be an essential part of the Invincibles make-up.
England's Lauren Winfield-Hill is enjoying a white-ball renaissance at the back end of her career and will look to set a strong platform for her team at the top of the order.
The Invincibles will be the side to beat yet again as they look to build the tournament's first dynasty.
Who do the players think you should keep an eye on?
Sophia Smale took eight wickets in her debut season as Invincibles made it back-to-back final wins over Southern Brave
BBC Sport spoke to a player from each men's and women's team and asked them to pick two key players to watch and about their chances this year.
Bowler Saqib Mahmood, who was due to play for Oval Invincibles before picking up an injury: "I'm going to go Heinrich Klaasen, he's had a pretty good year. He had a good SA20 as well. He will be good for us as he finishes this year as well.
"I'm expecting us to win it. If everyone stays fit we win. It's as simple as that."
*Mahmood also picked Pakistan seamer Ihsanullah, who has been ruled out by injury.
Oval Invincibles all-rounder Alice Capsey: "We did well in the draft to pretty much keep the same squad, so really positive. We've added a couple of additions but the draft was a really good thing for levelling out the squads.
"I wouldn't be saying myself as one to watch. I'm going to go Sophia Smale, who is a young left-arm spinner."
*Capsey also picked Tash Farrant, who has since been ruled out by injury.
Where will they finish?
Now it's your turn to have your say. Pick how you think the men's and women's group-stage tables will finish and share them on social media using #BBCCricket, external.
Read about the other teams: Birmingham Phoenix, London Spirit, Manchester Originals, Northern Superchargers, Southern Brave, Trent Rockets, Welsh Fire.