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Sunrisers Leeds refreshed their captaincy role ahead of another The Hundred league. In place of Harry Brook, they have appointed Zak Crawley as their captain for the 2026 The Hundred season.
On June 13, the franchise, owned by the Sun Group, owner of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, announced Zak Crawley as their newly appointed leader. “Orange Army, here’s your skipper for the men’s team. Captain Zak,” the announcement reads.
Orange Army, here’s your skipper for the men’s team 🧡
Captain Zak 🔥💪 pic.twitter.com/GlZd9qTGiz
— SunRisers Leeds (@sunrisersleeds) June 13, 2026
Zak Crawley is a batter who is running out of favor
The announcement came right after the opener had decided to take a break from first-class cricket following the snub from the England national cricket team. Zak Crawley is among the English batters who have been struggling continuously to score runs as per the expectations. In the first six matches of the County Championship fixtures, the experienced batter remained without a half-century, after which he decided to put his first-class career into a halt.
Crawley, who was England’s third-highest run-scorer in the Ashes this winter, failed miserably during the ongoing domestic season with the Kent cricket team. In 6 matches and 12 innings with Kent, the 28-year-old scored 226 runs at 20.54 across 12 innings with a top score of 44.
Zak is on a break from First-Class cricket
“After discussions between Zak Crawley, the player group, coaching staff, and the ECB, Crawley will be rested for the next two County Championship fixtures,” Kent informed in an official statement.
“This period will allow him to recharge so he can fully commit and give his all for the remainder of the season, with his immediate focus shifting to T20 cricket through to the end of the Vitality Blast.”
This year’s The Hundred league is scheduled to start on July 21. Ahead of the season opener, Sunrisers Leeds will expect their newly appointed captain to find his run-scoring bat again.
According to an ESPNCricinfo report published on June 11, it was reported that after discussing with the franchise officials, Brook decided to put down the extra burden in the form of the captaincy.
“ESPNcricinfo has learned that Crawley is also set to be appointed captain at Sunrisers Leeds for the Hundred, with his team-mate Harry Brook agreeing with the franchise that he should play without the burden of captaincy this season,” reported early, only a couple of days ago.
Zak Crawley claimed his last half-century on May 25, 2026, during Kent’s match against Sussex. In his last 10 games, it was the only occasion when he crossed the 50-run mark.
Sunrisers finished third in 2025
Ahead of the 2026 season, Sunrisers Leeds retained Harry Brook and Brydon Carse for the 2026 edition of The Hundred, with Daniel Vettori as their men’s team head coach. Brook and Carse, both of the England internationals, have been with the franchise since the tournament’s 2021 inaugural season.
Last season, under the leadership of Harry Brook, Sunrisers Leeds (Previously known as Northern Superchargers), finished third in the 8-team points table with five wins and three defeats in 8 matches. Oval Invincibles, the champions of the 2026 The Hundred, emerged as the champions with 24 points.