Manchester Super Giants? Hundred franchise set for name change

Manchester Originals will incorporated 'Super Giants' into their sanction for early seasons of The Hundred, says nan Indian billionaire who controls nan franchise.

Sanjiv Goenka's RPSG Group paid £80m for a 70% liking successful nan squad based astatine Old Trafford.

He is nan proprietor of Indian Premier League (IPL) broadside Lucknow Super Giants and SA20 broadside Durban Super Giants successful South Africa, and revealed nan Manchester squad will now beryllium brought into statement pinch his different franchises.

In an exclusive interview, Goenka told BBC Sport: "You will spot a sanction change, and we will decidedly bring successful nan Super Giants into this."

"That is thing that we're trying to integrate, Super Giants into each our franchises."

Manchester Originals are nan first of nan 8 privatised Hundred teams to corroborate specified a alteration since nan ECB invited finance into nan teams, pinch others expected to travel suit.

This week nan American investors successful nan Lords-based London Spirit said they would retain their existent name.

One of India's richest tycoons, Goenka suggested nan rebranding will hap successful October, pinch officials understood to beryllium considering Manchester Super Giants aliases Manchester Originals Super Giants.

In a further motion of nan power nan caller investors will now person complete nan tournament's future, he said nan team's existent achromatic kit and personality could besides acquisition an overhaul, adding: "We'd for illustration to person an integrated colour palette for each our cricket franchises."

With Originals stars Jos Buttler and Heinrich Klaasen besides signed up to his Durban franchise, Goenka revealed that he would for illustration arsenic galore players arsenic imaginable to correspond each of his 3 cricket teams.

"We would decidedly want that but pinch nan IPL it's an auction strategy and truthful it's not ever nan simplest point to do.

"[However], we would decidedly strive towards that because it brings a greater bonding, it brings a greater continuity, it brings a greater understanding."

Even though Hundred teams person only 4 location fixtures each play and ain nary tangible assets, nan ECB's auction raised a staggering £520m to beryllium reinvested successful home cricket. When asked really he intended to execute a return connected his immense investment, Goenka identified overseas TV authorities arsenic perchance "huge", and said: "When I invested $900m to bargain an IPL team, nan full world thought I was mad.

"In nan abstraction of 3 and a half years, [it] is astir apt worthy $1.5bn. The IPL is simply a convention for illustration nary different but The Hundred…can only turn and we do judge that it will turn hugely.

"It's astir building an affectional relationship pinch not only nan sport, but nan format and much importantly nan team. It doesn't hap overnight. The IPL has taken 18 years to scope wherever it is." The IPL is presently weighted astatine £14bn.

Goenka said nan value of players successful nan 100-ball format was "better than I had anticipated" but besides added, "can we get different higher value players of world modular to travel and play here? We surely can."

The Hundred, which launched successful 2021, features double-headers wherever men's and women's teams play matches astatine nan aforesaid venue connected nan aforesaid day. When asked what he thought astir nan women's competition, Goenka said: "There is simply a batch that needs to beryllium done to bring up nan standard, but it's a awesome start."

Some of nan different investors successful The Hundred are expected to push for it to go a T20 competition, but Goenka said: "I'm frankly enjoying this format. I'm overmuch much familiar, complete a longer play of clip pinch nan T20… but nan much I spot this, nan much I for illustration it."

RPSG Group secured a controlling liking successful Manchester Originals aft being outbid by a Californian tech consortium for nan London Spirit franchise.

"You're ne'er happy not to triumph immoderate bid, but americium I happy pinch nan outcome, nan measurement it's gone for us? I'm very happy pinch it," Goenka insisted.

Owners of IPL teams person invested successful 4 of nan franchises, and contempt nan Originals' impending rebrand, Goenka insists he is respectful of nan big county's heritage.

"The very truth that we are partners pinch Lancashire, it's a responsibility. It's thing that we are cognisant of and it's thing that we will do our champion to present on," he said.

When asked if nan squad could use nan county, he added: "The ownership is abstracted but I deliberation nan interests are common. We would for illustration to activity pinch Lancashire to spot what we tin do to create cricket here. Until that happens, nan Manchester Originals arsenic a franchise will not turn significantly.

"And what tin we do, say, successful 5 years, 7 years, to person a bulk of nan nationalist squad successful England coming retired of Manchester? So for illustration today, you person a Jos Buttler aliases Phil Salt aliases a Josh Tongue. How could we get much and much players from present processing their competencies to nan level wherever they are called [up] for nationalist duty?"

The absence of immoderate England players from Hundred matches truthful soon aft nan conclusion of nan thrilling drawn Test bid against India has reinforced concerns complete nan effect nan franchise tourney is having connected nan fixture almanac and subordinate workload. A mobility asked has been whether greater readying is needed to guarantee nan biggest stars are available.

"I don't deliberation The Hundred creates issues for nan different formats," said Goenka. "I deliberation nan cricket almanac is specified that each convention is back-to-back, that's nan measurement this crippled goes. I deliberation players request to beryllium fresh capable to return that pressure.

"If nan players judge they cannot do justness to a format, past they should not make themselves available."

On Monday, Manchester Originals' men's broadside secured their first triumph of this year's competition, beating London Spirit.