In a bizarre turn of events, England have been bowled out in exactly 100 balls in back-to-back T20Is against South Africa on the eve of the second season of The Hundred.
The Hundred is set to get underway on Wednesday, with Southern Brave taking on Welsh Fire in the opening match of the tournament at the Rose Bowl. And with England's white-ball stars all set to be in action in The Hundred, they come into the tournament after failing to win a single series this summer.
After a busy run of 12 games in just 24 days, England have lost three series and drew one, with their run coming to an end with a disappointing 2-1 defeat to the Proteas. Having won the first match in stunning fashion after racking up a mammoth 234 with the bat, England's batting let them down in the final two games.
And they were bowled out in exactly 16.4 overs in both matches, with cricket fans quickly making comparisons to The Hundred. "England all out in 16.4 overs for the second match in a row, good thing The Hundred starts on Wednesday innit," joked one.
"England players must getting focused for the Hundred because the last two games they’ve been all out for 16.4 overs," added another. A third joked: "Englands innings have lasted exactly 100 balls after Eoin Morgan prophesied that the Hundred could save Englands international teams. Coincidence? I think not."
And England quick Tymal Mills believes The Hundred will be important ahead of the T20 World Cup this winter, with players hoping to force their way into contention for the upcoming tour of Pakistan.
"There is definitely a subplot now with The Hundred, with guys trying to solidify their place and guys trying to force their way in," Mills told BBC Test Match Special. "I imagine there will be some rotation in the Pakistan tour because seven games is a long tour in T20 cricket."
Reflecting on the series defeat, captain Jos Buttler said: "We like to try and challenge ourselves with the bat but the way we played, the way we went down, is the most disappointing thing. We lacked intent and confidence and didn't manage to put the opposition under pressure, we were never able to wrestle the initiative.
"We've gone through change as a team. There's a change of leadership and personnel. It's not for the lack of trying, we just haven't performed as we'd like to as a group. We have to just go back and reflect. There's a huge competition on the way."
