Eoin Morgan has also been confirmed as captain of the men’s team by Head Coach Shane Warne. These World Cup winning captains will lead their teams in the first season of The Hundred starting next summer.
Knight famously led England to their fourth Women’s World Cup triumph at Lord’s in 2017 in a nail-biting final against India. She is also one of England’s most successful batters and has considerable short format experience, captaining Western Storm to two titles in the Kia Super League (KSL) where she was coached by Griffin.
Heather Knight said: “I’m really looking forward to captaining the London Spirit women’s team in The Hundred next year. With the new format there’s going to be the chance to have a real tactical input as a captain and I’m excited to work that out and also bring together a new team in a new competition.
“It’s also brilliant that Trevor has been announced as coach. I really enjoyed working with him in the KSL and hopefully we can have more success together.
“Our team is now really beginning to take shape, having also recently signed Deandra Dottin. I’m looking forward to working with her, Trevor and the rest of the squad once they’re confirmed.”
"She is a brilliant cricketer and a natural leader with significant experience in captaining sides
Women’s Head Coach, Trevor Griffin said: “It’s an honour to be appointed as Head Coach of the women’s London Spirit team and I am thrilled to announce Heather as our captain.
She is a brilliant cricketer and a natural leader with significant experience in captaining sides. I’m really looking forward to being involved with The Hundred and contributing to this next big step in the development of the professional women’s game.” Men’s white-ball captain Eoin Morgan joins London Spirit on the back of an outstanding summer, having led England to their first ever ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup win.
Morgan is arguably England’s greatest ever male white-ball cricketer. He is also England’s top run scorer in both One-Day Internationals and International T20s, as well as the most capped cricketer in both formats. He made his Test and IT20 debuts for England at Lord’s, where he will now return as captain of the London Spirit men’s team.
Eoin Morgan said: “I can’t wait to get started as captain of the London Spirit men’s team. It’s going to be a hugely exciting new competition and I’m looking forward to being a part of it.
“The draft went fantastically well for us and we have an outstanding squad with the likes of Mark Wood, Mohammad Nabi and Dan Lawrence in our team.
“As a player and a captain I am always looking for ways to improve and it’s clear from speaking to Shane - who has an amazing cricket brain, about everything from tactics in this new competition to how to get the best from our squad - that this is an exciting opportunity to take cricket forward.”
Shane Warne, men’s Head Coach said: “I am over the moon to have Eoin as our captain. He has had a truly unforgettable year and we all know that he is an outstanding leader. I believe he can give our team the edge in The Hundred.”
The new competition will arrive at Lord's for the first time on Tuesday 21st July 2020, when London Spirit men's team take on Trent Rockets the Home of Cricket.
On Thursday 23rd July, Lord's will play host to its first double-header in the Hundred with the London Spirit women's team taking on Northern Superchargers, before the men's teams do battle on the same day.For the latest news and priority access to tickets visit thehundred.com.