Charlotte Edwards to play for Southern Vipers in inaugural T20 Super League
The England captain Charlotte Edwards will represent Southern Vipers in the inaugural women’s Twenty20 Super League this summer after the ECB announced the initial allocation of players.
Six teams will compete in the new competition, with Edwards’ Southern Vipers – who will be based at Hampshire’s Ageas Bowl – competing against Lancashire Thunder, Loughborough Lightning, Surrey Stars, Taunton-based Western Storm and Yorkshire Diamonds.
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The 20 players in the England women’s performance squad have been distributed among the clubs, with Edwards set to captain a team which includes her Kent colleagues Natasha Farrant and Lydia Greenway. She said: “With three or four England players, plus three overseas players per squad, the standard of the Kia Super League is going to be very high – exactly what’s needed to take our game forwards.
“I’m really excited and happy to be a Southern Viper. The Ageas Bowl is somewhere that I’ve always enjoyed playing and I have particularly fond memories of winning the Women’s Ashes there in 2013.
“I’ve also done a lot of work in the area with the Hampshire Cricket Board and Chance to Shine, so it’s somewhere that I already feel really at home. I cannot wait to play there as a Viper this summer.”
Sarah Taylor will captain Lancashire, who also have Kate Cross and Danni Wyatt in the ranks. Heather Knight leads a Western Storm side including Anya Shrubsole and Fran Wilson, while all-rounder Natalie Sciver captains Surrey, who have been allocated opening batter Tammy Beaumont and spinner Laura Marsh.
Loughborough and Yorkshire have been awarded four players each, with Katherine Brunt, Jenny Gunn, Danielle Hazell and Lauren Winfield representing the Diamonds and Georgia Elwiss, Becky Grundy, Amy Jones and Beth Langston all featuring for Lightning.
The teams will play each other once between 30 July and 14 August, with the top four progressing to Finals Day at Chelmsford on 21 August.