The Hundred is better than the Aussies' Big Bash - Yorkshire CCC and Northern Superchargers star Adam Lyth

The Yorkshire batsman described it as a “fantastic” experience as Scorchers romped to a record fifth title.

But although the Big Bash has been around since 2011, becoming an integral part of the franchise calendar, Lyth believes that The Hundred - which only began in 2021 - is already superior.

“I think The Hundred is better than the Big Bash,” said Lyth, who plays for the Headingley-based Northern Superchargers in the English event.

“Personally, I think The Hundred is brilliant; that’s just my opinion.

“I know it’s got its critics in terms of the schedule, but you’ve got to try and fit it in when the best weather is to make the most out of it, I guess, and there’s no easy way to do the schedule. I don’t think you can win with the schedule, to be honest. It’s very, very tough.

“But, from a cricketing point of view, you’re playing against the best domestic players and some unbelievable overseas in The Hundred, so it’s a really good standard.

“I think the way they do the Big Bash is fantastic, don’t get me wrong, but the standard is better in The Hundred.”

Lyth, 35, directly credits The Hundred with winning him a place in the Big Bash League.

The left-handed opener believes that his performances for Superchargers last summer - 299 runs in eight innings, including five scores of 40-plus and three above 50 - helped to persuade Perth Scorchers to sign him as a replacement for Phil Salt after the England man was ruled out through injury.

“I did well in The Hundred last year, so, off the back of that, I got into the Big Bash,” said Lyth, whose seven appearances for Scorchers brought 73 runs as he struggled to reprise his Superchargers form.

“That’s another benefit of The Hundred, the exposure that can get you into other competitions around the world.

“Although I didn’t go as well as I would have liked in the Big Bash, if I hadn’t done as well in The Hundred and had that exposure, I wouldn’t have played in Australia.

“The Hundred is going to continue to grow the game in my opinion, and the competition itself, the standard of the cricket, is great.”

Few players are better qualified than Lyth to judge the respective merits of the franchise events springing up around the world.

He has also experienced the T20 tournaments in Pakistan, Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates, along with T10 cricket in the Middle East.

“I’ve played in the PSL (Pakistan Super League) and I’d have to say that’s right up there,” said Lyth.

“I’ve not played in the IPL (Indian Premier League), so I can’t comment on that, although I’ve put my name in for the IPL before, even though I didn’t really think I was going to get picked up.

“Bangladesh was good, the ILT20 (in the UAE) was good, and T10 was fun to play in as well; it’s all-action and over in no time.

“By all accounts, from talking to players, the new South African tournament is very good too, so there’s lots of great competitions out there.”

Lyth’s first taste of franchise cricket came in 2017, when he took part in the 2017-18 Bangladesh Premier League for Rangpur Riders - months after striking what remains the highest individual score in the T20 Blast (161 against Northamptonshire at Headingley, then the third-highest T20 innings in the world and now the sixth-highest).

He represented Multan Sultans in the 2019/20 Pakistan Super League and, last winter, turned out for Desert Vipers in the ILT20 in the UAE.

Lyth has reserved his best franchise form to date for Superchargers; 13 matches across the first two seasons of The Hundred have brought him 339 runs at 26.07.

After fifth and sixth-placed finishes in the eight-team tournament, Lyth is hopeful that Superchargers can challenge at the right end of the table when this year’s competition starts in August.

“We’ve got a couple of new additions this year, which is exciting, although we’ll need a new captain because Faf (du Plessis) is playing in the MLC (Major League Cricket) in America, and the CPL (Caribbean Premier League),” said Lyth.

“I certainly think we can improve, without a doubt, but they’re all good teams in that competition, let’s be honest.

“I just think these tournaments are brilliant for players; the MLC can only be a good thing, and I guess there’s going to be more and more of these franchise competitions coming around.

“There’s talk of one now in Saudi Arabia, and if you’re a white-ball only player, in particular, that’s going to be brilliant for you, a chance to earn more money and to get more exposure.”