Eva Gray leaves Essex to join Hampshire on two-year deal

Eva Gray has left Essex to join Hampshire on a two-year deal.

The 26-year-old all-rounder — someone who contributes with both bat and ball — will switch counties after two seasons with Essex, BBC Sport reported on 30 September 2026. Her departure from Essex was confirmed ahead of the Hampshire announcement, according to the Daily Echo.

Gray played 53 times for Essex across all formats in those two seasons. She took 63 wickets and scored 239 runs. Her sharpest short-form return came in the 2026 Vitality Blast, the domestic Twenty20 competition, where her 17 wickets made her Essex's leading wicket-taker.

She was more than a new signing at Essex. Gray joined in October 2024 as a founding member of the women's team and later served as vice-captain. A right-arm seam bowler, who relies on pace and movement off the pitch rather than spin, she claimed 31 wickets in 30 matches in Essex's first season as a professional outfit and earned a place in the Women's PCA Team of the Year.

Her record in The Hundred, the professional 100-ball tournament, is strong. Gray was part of the Oval Invincibles squad from 2021 to 2023 and won the competition's first two titles with them. She lifted the trophy again with London Spirit in 2024.

The move continues a long county journey. Gray made her county debut for Surrey in 2014. She has since represented Surrey Stars, South East Stars and Sunrisers before her Essex spell. Last November she had agreed an Essex extension due to run until the end of the 2028 season.

For Hampshire supporters, this means a proven taker of wickets with experience of winning tight tournaments. She takes wickets. She does it often.