Rosa Simkin (@rosatalksball) – 21/04/25
A new season = a brand new ball game.
The 2025 season kicks off this Wednesday, bringing with it the long-awaited launch of Project Darwin as women’s professional cricket is handed back to the counties. For Tier One, that means fully professional squads, increased resources, world class overseas additions, and most importantly, for the first time, a genuine home base. It is our opportunity to strengthen the professional pathway in England.
With new identities, reshaped playing squads, and brand new tournaments, here is your comprehensive guide to what women’s professional cricket will look like in 2025 with everything you need to know ahead of it all kicking off this week.
Order of Content – What is Tier 1?, The Competitions, 8 Players To Watch, My Predictions, Team by Team Guide (Squad Breakdown) & Key Dates.
What is Tier 1?
Women’s Domestic Structure 2025 Pyramid – ©England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB)
Tier One forms part of the brand-new women’s domestic set-up, dubbed by the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) as Project Darwin.
In 2020, as part of their bid to grow the women’s game in England and Wales, the ECB opted to create a regional system, taking direct control of the professional women’s game away from the counties. Eight regional hubs were formed across the country, each representing a number of counties. For example, Central Sparks (the West Midlands hub) were partnered with Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Staffordshire, and Shropshire.
In 2024, the ECB announced that, owing to the growth of the women’s game during this period, the professional game would be handed back to the eighteen first-class counties from the 2025 season. However, recognising that the game is not yet ready to support eighteen professional women’s sides, they allowed counties to submit bids to host one of eight teams with Tier One status. The bidding process then split the counties into Tier One and Tier Two, with Tier Three containing the National Counties.
Tier One is replacing The Regions as the fully professional level of the game and contains teams the ECB believes will push for growth and provide the necessary resources to allow growth.
The Competitions
In a bid to unify the identity between the men’s and women’s county structures, the ECB has extended Metro Bank and Vitality’s naming rights (previously exclusive to the men’s white-ball tournaments) to encompass the women’s competitions as well. For the first time, the men’s and women’s teams will play under the same tournament banners: the Metro Bank One Day Cup and the Vitality Blast. For the women, these tournaments will be split into two leagues. Tier One will play in League One, while Tier Two plays in League Two. In addition, all three women’s tiers will compete alongside each other in a brand-new knock-out T20 tournament, also sponsored by Vitality.
Metro Bank One Day Cup (League One)
Metro Bank takes over the naming rights for the domestic 50-over tournament; however, the trophy the teams will compete for will remain known as the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, possibly the only piece of the Regional era to transition into the professional county game. League One consists of a single group, featuring all eight counties. Each county will play 14 fixtures, facing all the other seven twice, both at home and away. At the conclusion of the group stages, the top four counties will progress to the semi-finals.
Vitality Blast (League One)
Whilst the tournament’s male counterpart enters its 22nd season, the Women’s Blast is entering its first. The tournament consists of one group, containing all eight Tier One counties. The league will see each side play the other seven both at home and away, fourteen fixtures each. Following the conclusion of the group stage, the top team will go straight through to the final, with second and third going through to an eliminator on Finals Day at The Oval.
Vitality T20 Women’s County Cup
The best way I can describe the cup is as the women’s cricket equivalent of the FA Cup in football. The tournament features 37 teams from all three tiers of the women’s game and operates on a knockout basis, with five match-days taking place across May. Tier 2 and 3 teams enter in Round One, with Tier One sides joining in Round Three. Tier 3 consists of the National Counties. The tournament provides opportunities for players from lower tiers to compete against professional teams, hopefully helping to bridge the gap between the recreational and professional game.
8 Players To Watch
Kathryn Bryce (The Blaze) – A leader in every sense, Kathryn Bryce had a landmark year in 2024, captaining Scotland at their first-ever Women’s T20 World Cup. Domestically, Bryce was nothing short of outstanding. She was the top scorer in The Blaze’s Charlotte Edwards Cup-winning campaign, amassing 478 runs and earning the title of Player of the Tournament for her all-round impact and composure under pressure. In the longer format, she added another 272 runs in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy and continued to be a force with the ball, taking 32 wickets across the season. As arguably one of the most consistent and complete performers in the domestic game, Bryce continue’s to prove she’s a match-winner with both bat and ball and will be crucial to The Blaze’s 2025 campaign.
Katie Levick (Durham) – 33-year-old spinner Katie Levick has long been one of the standout performers in women’s domestic cricket. A key figure throughout the Regional era, she represented the Northern Diamonds from the very beginning in 2020, taking an impressive 130 wickets across formats during her time with the side. In 2024, Levick was once again a model of consistency. She took 10 wickets for Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred and a further 34 wickets for the Northern Diamonds across both the Charlotte Edwards Cup and the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy. Though her work often flies under the radar in the wider media landscape, her reliability and control with the ball have been central to her teams’ successes. If history is anything to go by, Durham will soon feel the benefit of her experience.
Sophia Smale (Essex) – The young Welsh spinner makes the move to Essex from Western Storm, where she began her professional career. Smale was part of England’s squad for the inaugural U19 Women’s World Cup in South Africa in 2023, a tournament in which she claimed 8 wickets and showcased her control and composure on the global stage. Since then, her trajectory has been firmly upward. In the 2024 50-over domestic season, she took 13 wickets for Western Storm and developed into a reliable opening batter in the format, underlining her growing all-round value. In The Hundred, playing for the Oval Invincibles, she continued to impress, claiming 9 wickets and making her presence felt in the field with some breathtaking catches.
Ellyse Perry (Hampshire) – A name that needs no introduction, Australian allrounder Ellyse Perry has earned legendary status in the women’s game. A player who has it all – leadership qualities, consistency with the ball, and power with the bat – she’s a crucial member of any squad she’s part of. Perry has featured for the Birmingham Phoenix on and off in The Hundred since 2022, but her signing for Hampshire this season marks a return to the domestic T20 scene, having last represented Loughborough Lightning in the 2017 KSL. In the 2024 edition of The Hundred, she scored 203 runs and took 8 wickets while captaining Birmingham Phoenix.
Grace Potts (Lancashire) – The 22-year-old seamer has made the move up north after a multi-year spell with Midlands outfit, The Central Sparks. A standout performer in the women’s game for several seasons now, Potts has built a reputation for her consistency and control with the ball, qualities that make her a valuable asset to any squad she’s part of. In 2024, she took 27 wickets across formats, underlining her reliability. More recently, during England A’s tour of Australia, she impressed again, picking up seven wickets across three matches.
Katie Jones (Somerset) – Discussions about who should eventually replace long-term England wicketkeeper Amy Jones dominate headlines every year, and I’ve decided I’d like to throw a name into the ring: 19-year-old Katie Jones. Jones played a pivotal role in England U19’s run to the finals in Malaysia earlier this year at the U19 T20 World Cup. Her standout performance came against New Zealand, where she made four stumpings and took a catch. At the back end of the 2024 season, she took over wicketkeeping duties at Western Storm, claiming five catches and one stumping across three games.
Paige Scholfield (Surrey) – 29-year-old batter Paige Scholfield enjoyed a breakthrough 2024 season, making both her ODI and T20I debuts for England during their series against Ireland in September, a series in which she scored 89 runs. More recently, she grabbed headlines with a standout performance in England A’s one-off first-class match against Australia A, scoring 164 and 39 across the two innings following her return from injury. Domestically, her 2024 form was just as impressive. Representing both the South East Stars and Oval Invincibles, Scholfield amassed 891 runs across formats, underlining her growing influence with the bat.
Issy Wong (Warwickshire) – Anyone who follows the women’s game has probably heard the story of Issy Wong. The young, exciting pace bowler who made a dramatic rise through the England ranks, before it all came crashing down, through little fault of her own. But Wong is on the rise once again, putting in the hard yards behind the scenes. Most recently, she took 5/63 for England A in their multi-day game against Australia, her first first-class wickets since that explosive debut against South Africa in 2022. I certainly wouldn’t want to be facing her this season.
My Predictions:
Tier one is new, and like much of the domestic structure right now, it’s wrapped in a fair bit of uncertainty. With a brand-new format, evolving squads, and a fixture list that is yet to reveal all of its twists, predicting what to come is… well… a bit of a gamble.
But in true Rosa Talks Ball fashion, I’m taking a swing at it anyway.
I’ve gone all in with complete table predictions and final winners, so no pressure!
Metro Bank One Day Cup (League 1)
Champions – The Blaze
Group Stage:
- The Blaze
- Surrey
- Lancashire
- Essex
- Hampshire
- Durham
- Warwickshire
- Somerset
Vitality Blast (League 1)
Champions – Surrey
Group Stage:
- Surrey
- The Blaze
- Hampshire
- Lancashire
- Warwickshire
- Essex
- Durham
- Somerset
Vitality T20 Women’s County Cup
Champions – Lancashire
Other Finalist – Warwickshire
Team by Team Guide:
The Blaze (Nottinghamshire)
Head Coach – Craig Cumming
Captain – Kirstie Gordon
Overseas – Heather Graham (AUS) & Orla Prendergast (IRE)
Centrally Contracted (ECB) – Tammy Beaumont, Sarah Glenn, Amy Jones & Nat Sciver-Brunt
Squad – Kirstie Gordon (C), Olivia Baker, Grace Ballinger, Tammy Beaumont (ECB), Georgie Boyce, Kathryn Bryce, Sarah Bryce, Ella Claridge, Georgia Elwiss, Sarah Glenn (ECB), Heather Graham (Overseas), Josie Groves, Lucy Higham, Scarlett Hughes, Amy Jones (ECB), Marie Kelly, Michaela Kirk, Cassidy McCarthy, Charley Phillips, Orla Prendergast, (Overseas) Nat Sciver-Brunt (ECB), Prisha Thanawala, Amy Wheeler.
Durham
Head Coach – Danielle Hazell
Captain – Hollie Armitage
Overseas – Suzie Bates (NZL)
Centrally Contracted (ECB) – Lauren Filer & Bess Heath (ECB Development Contract)
Squad – Hollie Armitage (C), Suzie Bates (Overseas), Leah Dobson, Lauren Filer (ECB), Katherine Fraser, Abi Glenn, Bess Heath (ECB Dev), Trudy Johnson, Katie Levick, Emma Marlow, Mia Rogers, Lizzie Scott, Phoebe Turner, Sophia Turner, Mady Villiers & Emily Windsor.
Essex
Head Coach – Andy Tennant
Captain – Grace Scrivens
Overseas – Maddie Penna (AUS)
Centrally Contracted (ECB) – N/A
Squad – Grace Scrivens (C), Kate Coppack, Kelly Castle, Amara Carr, Ariana Dowse, Jo Gardner, Jodi Grewcock, Eva Gray, Cordelia Griffith, Lissy MacLeod, Abtaha Maqsood, Esmae, MacGregor, Sophie Munro, Flo Miller, Maddie Penna (Overseas) & Sophia Smale.
Hampshire
Head Coach – Paul Prichard
Captain – Georgia Adams
Overseas – Charli Knott (AUS) & Ellyse Perry (AUS)
Centrally Contracted (ECB) – Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Freya Kemp & Linsey Smith
Squad – Georgia Adams (C), Lauren Bell (ECB), Maia Bouchier (ECB), Naomi Dattani, Freya Davies, Daisy Gibb, Nancy Harman, Freya Kemp (ECB), Charli Knott (Overseas), Ava Lee, Ella McCaughan, Abi Norgrove, Ellyse Perry (Overseas), Linsey Smith (ECB), Rhianna Southby, Megan Sturge, Mary Taylor, Poppy Tulloch & Rebecca Tyson.
Lancashire
Head Coach – Chris Read
Captain – Ellie Threlkeld
Overseas – Alana King (AUS) & Katie Mack (AUS)
Centrally Contracted (ECB)– Kate Cross, Sophie Ecclestone & Mahika Gaur
Squad – Ellie Threlkeld (C), Olivia Bell, Darcey Carter, Alice Clarke, Danielle Collins, Kate Cross (ECB), Sophie Ecclestone (ECB), Mahika Gaur (ECB), Phoebe Graham, Liberty Heap, Grace Johnson, Hannah Jones, Eve Jones, Alana King, Emma Lamb, Ailsa Lister, Katie Mack, Sophie Morris, Fi Morris, Tara Norris, Grace Potts, Hannah Rainey & Seren Smale
Somerset
Head Coach – Trevor Griffin
Captain – Sophie Luff
Overseas – Amanda-Jade Wellington (AUS)
Centrally Contracted (ECB) – Charlie Dean, Dani Gibson & Heather Knight
Squad – Sophie Luff (C), Ellie Anderson, Olivia Barnes, Emma Corney, Charlie Dean (ECB), Dani Gibson (ECB), Alex Griffiths, Lola Harris, Jess Hazell, Niamh Holland, Laura Jackson, Katie Jones, Heather Knight (ECB), Amelie Munday, Rebecca Odgers, Mollie Robbins, Chloe Skelton, Erin Vukusic, Amanda-Jade Wellington (Overseas) & Fran Wilson.
Surrey
Head Coach – Johann Myburgh
Captain – Bryony Smith
Overseas – Grace Harris (AUS)
Centrally Contracted (ECB) – Alice Capsey, Sophia Dunkley, Ryana MacDonald-Gay (ECB Dev) & Danni Wyatt-Hodge
Squad – Bryony Smith (C), Alice Capsey (ECB), Kira Chathli, Priyanaz Chatterji, Tilly Corteen-Colleman, Aylish Cranstone, Alice Davidson-Richards, Sophia Dunkley (ECB), Phoebe Franklin, Dani Gregory, Grace Harris (Overseas), Emma Jones, Charlotte Lambert, Ryana MacDonald-Gay (ECB Dev), Bethan Miles, Alice Monaghan, Paige Scholfield, Jemimah Spence, Alexa Stonehouse & Danni Waytt-Hodge (ECB).
Warwickshire
Head Coach – Ali Maiden
Captain – Georgia Davis
Overseas – N/A
Centrally Contracted – Issy Wong (ECB Dev)
Squad – Georgia Davis (C), Em Arlott, Meg Austin, Hannah Baker, Chloe Brewer, Bethan Ellis, Abbey Freeborn, Katie George, Hannah Hardwick, Sterre Kalis (LOAN – Yorkshire), Charis Pavely, Davina Perrin, Amu Surenkumar, Millie Taylor, Issy Wong (ECB Dev) & Nat Wraith.
Key Dates:
Metro Bank One Day Cup League 1
Opening Fixtures: Wednesday 23rd April
Group Stage Block One: 23/04 – 20/05
Group Stage Block Two: 24/07 – 30/07
Group Stage Block three: 04/09 – 13/09
Semi-Finals: Wednesday 17th September
Finals Day: Sunday 21st September, The Utilita Bowl, Southampton
Vitality Blast League 1
Opening Fixtures: Friday 30th of May
Group Stage Block One: 30/05 – 20/06
Group Stage Block Two: 04/07 – 18/07
Finals Day: Sunday 27th July, The Kia Oval
Vitality T20 Women’s County Cup
Round One: Monday 5th May
Round Two: Saturday 10th May
Round Three: Saturday 17th May
Quarter-Finals: Saturday 24th May
Finals Day: Monday 26th May, The Cooper Associate County Ground, Taunton
