By BBC (Sports) | Created at 2024-11-21 11:51:43 | Updated at 2024-11-21 16:08:35
4 hours ago
Women's teams have officially made the historic step of becoming "fully aligned" with the men's game at the announcement of the T20 Blast fixtures for 2025.
The 2025 season will include 52 double bills of men's and women's matches back to back - of which all 18 first-class counties will host at least one.
The Blast-Off weekend will start the new-look competition, beginning on Thursday, 29 May.
The Kia Oval will stage the first Women’s Finals Day on Sunday, 27 July, while Men’s Finals Day will be on Saturday, 13 September - again at Edgbaston, for the 17th time in the 23 years of T20 and the 13th straight year.
One significant change is that the team based at Edgbaston are listed just as the Bears, suggesting that the name Warwickshire might be used in T20 again after 11 seasons playing under the Birmingham Bears banner.
Defending men's champions Gloucestershire begin with a home game against Kent at Bristol on Friday, 30 May.
Nottinghamshire's women's side will continue to play as The Blaze, who beat South East Stars to win the last Charlotte Edwards Cup final last June.
They also start start on 30 May against the Bears, as part of a double bill at Trent Bridge.
The competition begins on Thursday, 29 May in Manchester, where 2015 winners Lancashire host 2018 winners Worcestershire, and Lord's, where Middlesex and Sussex meet in a double bill.
Blast Men’s Competition:
North Group: Bears, Derbyshire Falcons, Durham, Lancashire Lightning, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Notts Outlaws, Worcestershire Rapids, Yorkshire Vikings.
South Group: Essex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire Hawks, Kent Spitfires, Middlesex, Somerset, Sussex Sharks, Surrey.
Blast Women’s Competition:
Bears, Durham, Essex, Hampshire Hawks, Lancashire Thunder, Somerset, Surrey, The Blaze.
Blast Women’s League 2:
North Group: Derbyshire Falcons, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Worcestershire Rapids, Yorkshire.
South Group: Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Kent, Middlesex, Sussex Sharks.
