Cricket Hong Kong launches Women's Premier League

Chris Pickett, the head of women's cricket at CHK, who was at the forefront of the creation of this league, said that the Women's Premier League would help create a competitive environment, from which the players could be selected for the national team.

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“The Women’s Premier League (WPL) offers Cricket Hong Kong an ideal vehicle to both challenge the elite domestic players in Hong Kong, and to see them in the most competitive environment available in Hong Kong, to assess them for potential Hong Kong team selection," he said at the launch of the event.

"With selection for the teams not being limited to those eligible to represent Hong Kong, we ensure we get an elite group of players and experiences.”

The tournament will be an important part of the 2020-21 domestic season along with the new two-division structure in the Women’s T20 league.

The teams are named as Jade Jets and Bauhinia Stars, and the players will be selected by CHK to ensure a competitive match up across the three games. The tournament is set to begin with a couple of 35-over matches on October 18 and 22, followed by a 40-over final on December 13.

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Pickett said that the restructuring of the domestic setup would put an increased emphasis on players' performance at the domestic level, and would create a competitive environment to prepare the players for the demands of international cricket.

“From a product perspective, the franchise style and specific identities of the squads and allegiance for players with their squad will help emphasise the importance of the WPL within the CHK Women’s selection pathway. It also provides a high-profile product with which CHK can promote and expand the Women’s game through Hong Kong with their intent to stream and promote the matches on social media," he added.

All the matches will be live-streamed on Cricket Hong Kong's social media platforms.