Mahika Gaur and Danni Collins sign professional terms with Thunder

Collins' contract will run until the end of this season while teenage quick Gaur has put pen to paper on a part-time deal which will keep her with the region until the end of 2024

Mahika Gaur and Danni Collins have signed professional terms with Thunder.

Collins' contract will run until the end of this season while teenage quick Gaur has put pen to paper on a part-time deal which will keep her with the region until the end of 2024.

The pair join Ellie Threlkeld, Hannah Jones, Phoebe Graham, Laura Jackson, Daisy Mullan, Naomi Dattani, Fi Morris, Tara Norris, Liberty Heap and Seren Smale in Thunder's professional ranks. Emma Lamb, Sophie Ecclestone and Kate Cross are centrally contracted by England.

Collins, a left-handed batter, has featured 31 times for Thunder across both formats since 2020, scoring 132 List A runs and 131 T20 runs.

^{Batter Danni Collins [Naomi Baker/Getty Images]}

Gaur, meanwhile, burst onto the regional scene in 2023, taking five wickets in eight outings during Thunder's run to Charlotte Edwards Cup Finals Day and a further four wickets in three Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy matches.

The 17-year-old, who came onto Thunder's radar during a training session in Dubai in 2020, has played 19 T20Is for the UAE but has represented England A against Australia A this summer as well as training with the senior team.

Regional director of cricket, David Thorley, said: "We are really pleased to have agreed terms with two young players in Danni and Mahika to sign professionally.

"Danni has been in both the Lancashire Cricket and Thunder systems for a long time now and this contract is just reward for those years of hard work. We look forward to seeing her continued development over the course of this season.

"Mahika is a really exciting talent, and we are delighted that she has committed her future to stay with us for at least the next two seasons.

"Since first watching her bowl in Dubai, we have all been excited by Mahika's ability and potential and we are looking forward to watching her game improve over the next few years."