The Hundred was introduced as a tournament to shake up cricket and bring the sport to an entirely new audience. The inaugural edition of the competition in the summer of 2021 saw huge crowds flock to watch a brand-new format, which didn’t so much disrupt cricket tradition as smash it for six.
Fast and furious, action-packed edge of the seat cricket. The Hundred is here, and so are the gold custom cricket trophies handcrafted by English luxury silversmith, Thomas Lyte.
Renowned as one of the world’s greatest trophy makers, Thomas Lyte specialises in bespoke elite trophies, awards and silverware. The London-based English luxury brand are Royal Warrant Holders as Goldsmiths and Silversmiths to Her Majesty The Queen.
Commissioned by the ECB in 2019 to make both the women’s and men’s trophies, the master craftsmen at Thomas Lyte’s London-based silver workshops set to work making two identical gold sports trophies. The trophy designs were drawn up, hand painted and created in 3D by the custom trophy manufacturers’ very own elite sporting trophy designer Trevor Brown.
Combining traditional skills with leading edge modern methods, Thomas Lyte is responsible for many of the world’s most iconic sporting trophies. These include the Emirates FA Cup, the Rugby World Cup, the Davis Cup and the Guinness Six Nations trophy to name a few.
The two brand new 100 ball cricket men’s and women’s competitions by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), were planned for the summer of 2020.
But it was sadly delayed a year by the global COVID-19 pandemic. Work on the trophy began in the earliest days of the pandemic in 2020 while our craft team continued in their “COVID bubble” with regular progress updated remotely online.
Both maiden tournaments started with a bang in July 2021. Pent up excitement exploded in the stands of cricket grounds up and down the country as the tournament finally got underway with the women’s match between the Oval Invincibles and Welsh Fire opening the competition in front of a packed house at The Oval in South London, where The Hundred Cricket Trophies were unveiled.
Standing at 56cm tall and weighing just under 13kg, the two identical gold-plated trophies took over 190 hours to craft. Once the design was agreed with the ECB it was essential to create technical drawings and digital 3D artwork. Thomas Lyte are specialists in bespoke trophies. Creating two identical handmade custom trophies simultaneously is not an easy task without meticulous planning.
After gaining precise measurements from these drawings the team engraved the template onto flat sheets of brass. Head Silversmith, Kevin Hart, then gorged out the lines by hand. This step helps to fold the sheets more easily into the shapes that make up the iconic tournament logo. Hot-forging is the process used to fold and bend the metal at temperatures of over 700 degrees Celsius.
The folded pieces of trophy were then soldered, filed and polished ready for gold plating in Thomas Lyte’s plating tanks. The same tanks have been used to plate so many of the world’s major sporting trophies. After a final polish on polishing lathes spinning at over 3000 rpm, the pieces are then assembled and firmly attached to the hardwood plinth. The smaller pieces are combined with a sterling silver pole that suspends the T, H and E, replicating the tournament’s logo.
A plaque to be attached to the front of each trophy is then engraved with the tournament logo, with a second plaque prepared for the reverse where the champions team names are engraved each year.
Once the engraved plaque is fixed to the plinth, the completed trophy is passed to Thomas Lyte’s dedicated quality control team for the final check. Having many of the world’s most iconic sporting trophies crafted or repaired in our workshops, quality control is one of the most important stages in the process.
The Hundred trophies were no exception. Every millimetre of the trophies were checked under bright white lights for marks and imperfections in case further work was needed. It is only after this uncompromising process that the trophy is prepared for delivery to the client.
The opening women’s match between Oval Invincibles and Welsh Fire on the 22nd July 2021 was the first time that a women’s match had opened a tournament of this magnitude. It provided a perfect precursor to everything that followed.
Proudly promoting gender equality – with women’s and men’s matches taking place as double-headers throughout the tournament – the prize pot is shared equally between both tournaments with identical trophies, and medals also designed and made by Thomas Lyte.
This global first was just another reason why the Hundred established itself as an instant hit, not just in England but to a worldwide audience of millions.
A look at the demographic in the stands at Lords – a ground that has seen most things since its opening in 1814 – illustrated just how broad a reach the Hundred had. Even in its first season, it was already being hailed as a game-changer.
In addition to designing and making The Hundred Cricket Trophies, Thomas Lyte is proud to have designed and hand-crafted many of the sport’s other major prizes including the ICC Test Championship Mace, the ICC T20 World Cup Trophy, the Vitality Blast Trophy and the Kia Super League Trophy. Thomas Lyte also restores the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup and design and make medals for many ECB and ICC tournaments.
Our team make the conceivable possible, while preserving traditional skills, pioneering modern methods, and promoting authentic British craft across the globe. Combining the latest technologies with centuries of knowledge, Thomas Lyte’s silver workshops in London, England house world-class facilities for an elite team of designers and makers, masters of their craft. Learn about 3D printing, electroforming and other new technologies that our team have introduced to our sustainable handcrafting process.
The latest press, news and insights
Materials. Base Metal + Gold Plate with Sterling Silver
Workshop Processes. Cleaning, Filing, Sanding, Polishing, Plating And Hand-Engraving
Thomas Lyte are proud to be the designer and makers of The Hundred trophies.
Take a look at these fast facts about the trophies created for cricket’s newest competition for both men and women.
What is The Hundred?
The Hundred is an action-packed, new 100 ball cricket competition involving eight men’s and eight women’s teams located in major cities across England and Wales.
Who won The Hundred in 2021?
Oval Invincibles won the Women’s Competition and Southern Brave won the Men’s Competition.
How long did it take to create The Hundred trophies?
The two identical gold-plated trophies took over 190 hours to craft in Thomas Lyte’s London-based workshops.
