New ECB chairman Richard Thompson u-turns and insists The Hundred "is creating real value for the game"

As Surrey chair he voted against the introduction of the 100-ball competition but just days into his tenure as Ian Watmore's successor he is keen to extol the virtues of the tournament

Richard Thompson, the new England and Wales Cricket Board chair and previous opponent of The Hundred, believes the competition's broadcast reach means it is having a tangibly positive impact on the game.

While he was Surrey chair the club voted against the introduction of the 100-ball competition - the only county to do so.

Last week, he began his tenure as Ian Watmore's successor after prevailing in a much-delayed process, arriving as the preferred choice of the first-class and national counties.

But in an interview with former England men's captain Michael Atherton in The Times ahead of the third South Test at the Kia Oval, Thompson has appeared to give his support to a competition he was previously firmly against.

"I've seen it from a broadcast perspective and I look at the audience data for Sky and the BBC and they are over the moon with it," he said.

"It is reaching audiences other sports are not reaching let alone cricket.

^{Strauss is currently leading a high-performance review of the men's game (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)}

"As a broadcast product it is very effective and it's finding an audience that is creating real value for the game.

"In two or three years' time, I think the game might be surprised what the Hundred is worth. Four years ago, when I was against it, that was not an argument I necessarily saw."

For the 2022 tournament, TV viewing figures were down 12 per cent from the inaugural edition, to 14.1 million. The BBC, who showed 18 live games alongside Sky Sports, reported a 20 per cent downturn, blaming a busy schedule including the Commonwealth Games and the new Premier League football season.

Thompson accepts he faces a challenge to convince county members and devotees of the positives, given the messaging around the tournament upon its inception. Andrew Strauss, then England director of cricket, said in 2018 it would be for "people who aren’t 'traditional cricket fans'".

"The anxiety that county members are feeling is as a result of the way the Hundred played out when they felt they were not consulted," conceded Thompson.

"That was very contentious and I'll be transparent on the way the next CEO is rewarded and it will be far more geared to growth, participation, diversity, inclusion"

"We are feeling that tension now. We’ve got to get to a balance where the Hundred doesn't create the level of resentment that it does right now.

"By bringing in a younger, more diverse audience it is doing the job, but it's paying quite a big price for that."

Strauss' high-performance review is due to report but is has already confirmed the LV= Insurance County Championship will remain at 14 matches per side. Thompson insists the four domestic competitions can be accommodated in a single summer - "we fixate on the volume of cricket but it is more around scheduling" - helped by a restructuring of the County Championship, Royal London Cup and T20 Blast.

"We've got to make sure next year's Blast doesn't feel diminished, and that the 50-over competition doesn’t feel like it does now and that the championship still has primacy," he said.

"These were the challenges I highlighted four years ago and ironically it falls to me to help find a solution, which is why the high-performance review is well timed."

In 2020, prior to the first edition of The Hundred being postponed due to Covid-19, the ECB were advised to open up the eight franchises to private investment to help offset the impact of the pandemic, which left a financial hole of nearly £200 million in the sport. Thompson is open to outside backing but is keen to get the timing right.

Tom Harrison departed as CEO in June (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Among the other items in the new chair's in-tray is appointing a chief executive, following the departure of Tom Harrison in June. Harrison, who helped secure the £1.1 billion TV deal and brought cricket back to free-to-air TV, drew criticism for accepting a share of a £2.1 million bonus while 62 jobs were being cut at the ECB.

"I did feel it strange that the bonus was so geared to a particular outcome," added Thompson.

"I mean, it's a huge deal and Tom did an extraordinary job and should be applauded for that but I don’t think that any governing body should operate like a PLC does in the sense of having an LTIP [long-term incentive plan].

"It’s really important the board is incentivising the CEO and the execs in the right way. 

"That was very contentious and I'll be transparent on the way the next CEO is rewarded and it will be far more geared to growth, participation, diversity, inclusion.

"The motivations of the last five years have been so focused around money possibly at the expense of some other things, we do need to rebalance."

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