Hannah Baker headlines new professional contracts at Central Sparks

Georgia Davis and Grace Potts have also been awarded professional deals ahead of the 2023 season

England Under-19s international Hannah Baker, Georgia Davis and Grace Potts have been awarded professional contracts by Central Sparks ahead of the 2023 season.

The trio join Davina Perrin, Katie George, Chloe Brewer, Emily Arlott, Ami Campbell, Abbey Freeborn and Eve Jones on full-time regional contracts.

In October 2022, the ECB announced a £3.5m funding increase for women's domestic cricket and promised that every region would have 10 ECB-funded professionals from February 2023.

Baker, an 18-year-old spin bowler, was recently named in the 2023 Under-19s Women's T20 World Cup team of the tournament after taking 10 wickets for runners-up England.

^{Grace Potts and Georgia Davis [George Wood/Mike Hewitt/Getty Images]}

She enjoyed a breakout domestic season in 2022, taking seven wickets in the Charlotte Edwards Cup and a further five wickets in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.

Potts had a similarly impressive 2022 campaign, picking up 12 T20 wickets for Sparks – second only to Northern Diamonds bowler Katie Levick. Her 10 wickets in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy took her to a team-leading 22 for the season.

As for Davis, she has been a key figure in 50-over cricket from the beginning, taking 17 wickets in 12 outings and flexing her batting skills with a half-century against South East Stars. In T20 cricket, she has taken eight wickets in three matches for Sparks as well as representing Trent Rockets in The Hundred.

Laura MacLeod, regional director of women's cricket, said: "We're delighted to be offering contracts to Georgia, Grace and Hannah. All have prosperous futures and a contract means they can really focus on developing themselves on a full time basis."