The schedule for the ODI World Cup is going to be announced soon. It is believed that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will release the schedule soon after the current season of IPL gets over.
The tournament will be held in India from October 5 to November 19. Defending champions England could go up against New Zealand in the opening match. Both the teams last played the final at Lord’s in 2019.
According to media reports, the opening match of the tournament will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Apart from this, the final match will also be organized on this ground. Talking about India, its first match can be against Australia in Chennai. At the same time, the big match against Pakistan can be held on 15 October (Sunday).
According to reports, Pakistan has agreed to tour India for the World Cup amid the ongoing impasse over the Asia Cup. However, she has some concerns regarding the schedule. PCB has objected to playing against India in Ahmedabad.
PCB chief Najam Sethi is asking for some changes in the venues of their matches. However, it is learned that the PCB has agreed to play the final in Ahmedabad if the team reaches the title clash.
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As per the tentative schedule prepared so far, Pakistan will play its matches in Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bengaluru. BCCI is giving Pakistan more chances to play in South India. Stadiums in Kolkata, Delhi, Indore, Dharamshala, Guwahati, Rajkot, Raipur and Mumbai have also been shortlisted. Mohali and Nagpur have not been kept in the list.
Mumbai’s Wankhede is likely to get the semi-finals. All the teams will play nine league matches each. This would result in most grounds getting at least one Indian match. In total, there will be 48 matches between 10 teams in the World Cup, apart from hosts India, England, Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh and South Africa have secured their places.
A qualifying tournament will be held in June-July in Zimbabwe for the last two spots. In this, apart from two former champions West Indies and Sri Lanka, Netherlands, Ireland, Nepal, Oman, Scotland, United Arab Emirates and hosts Zimbabwe will participate.