The eight-team tournament was scheduled to start on July 17 this year. (The Hundred/Twitter)

Just four days after the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) announced the postponement of their new cricket tournament The Hundred until 2021, all signed players have been informed that their contracts have been terminated. The postponement was announced on April 30 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We can confirm that a letter terminating current player contracts has been issued today to all involved. This letter is necessary paperwork to legally update and inform players of the situation, which follows a notification last week around the launch of the new competition being moved to 2021,” said the ECB in a statement released to Stats Perform.

“We are working closely with the PCA (Professional Cricketers Association) on a number of options for players regarding next year’s launch.”

The eight-team tournament was scheduled to start on July 17 this year. All the franchises had selected their men’s squads in a draft in October, while the women’s teams were in the process of completing their squads from a number of player pools.

According to a report by the Independent, players were due to receive 80 per cent of their salaries at the end of the 2020 tournament and the contracts have been voided via a force majeure clause written in that removes liability for unforeseen circumstances.

In total, 570 players had put themselves up for the men’s draft of the tournament – 239 overseas stars, from every major international nation except India, and 331 domestic cricketers.

However, with a maximum of three overseas players per team, only 24 – just one in 10 – will be assigned to a team after throwing their names into the hat.