The Hundred Women’s 2026: Welsh Fire announce Sophie Devine as captain

New Zealand legend Sophie Devine has been announced as captain of the Welsh Fire Women's side ahead of The Hundred Women's 2026. This comes after the 36-year-old retired from international cricket at the end of the White Ferns' 2026 Women's T20 World Cup campaign.

Devine enters the new season as the joint-most expensive buy in the inaugural The Hundred auction. The Welsh Fire secured her services for GBP 210,000, the most alongside Beth Mooney in the women's game. She will now take over the reins as skipper from England opener Tammy Beaumont, who served in the role for four seasons. However, she has now been signed by the Birmingham Phoenix, leaving the seat vacant

Devine will now be tasked with leading a side filled with quality T20 players, including Freya Kemp, Em Arlott, Sarah Bryce and Georgia Wareham, to name a few. The now-retired superstar expressed her excitement in leading the only team from Wales and reuniting with head coach Michael Klinger. The pair worked together in the Gujarat Giants during the Women's Premier League.

I'm incredibly excited and honoured to be leading the Welsh Fire this year. Wales is a country that is fiercely loyal and loves their sport. This makes playing at Sophia Gardens bloody exciting and hopefully we can create an atmosphere that people love watching us play," Sophie Devine said via Welsh Fire's Instagram account.

It's always nice to be able to reconnect with players and coaches you've worked with before, and Michael (Klinger) has a huge amount of experience that will be crucial in helping get the best out of everyone involved and, most importantly, bringing that trophy home," Devine added.

Devine has previously played four seasons in the Hundred, three for the Birmingham Phoenix and last year for the Southern Brave. She has played 28 matches in the competition, scoring 576 runs at a strike-rate of 117.55 and taking 16 wickets along the way.

Devine reflects on record-break The Hundred Women's auction

Announcing Devine as their women's captain means that the Welsh Fire have now completed their lineup of skippers. At the start of the year, the Cardiff-based franchise directly signed Welshman Phil Salt and immediately named him captain of the men's setup.