2023 ODI World Cup schedule finally released

The 2023 men’s ODI World Cup will begin on October 5 in Ahmedabad, and matches will be held across ten venues, and culminate in the final – also in Ahmedabad – on November 19. The semi-finals will be held in Mumbai and Kolkata on November 15 and 16.

The 45 league matches and the three knockouts will be played in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Dharamsala, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune over a span of 46 days. The two semi-finals and the final will all have reserve days.

It is understood that if India qualify for the semi-finals, their knockout game will be held in Mumbai. Unless their opposition is Pakistan, in which case the game will be played in Kolkata.

The long-awaited, and much-delayed, World Cup schedule was finally released by the ICC and BCCI at an event in Mumbai on Tuesday, just 100 days before the start of the tournament. In comparison, the fixtures for the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales and the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand were released more than 12 months in advance.

The format will be the same as it was in 2019, with ten teams playing each other once in the league phase and the top four qualifying for the semi-finals. India qualified for the event as hosts, while Afghanistan, Australia, England, Bangladesh, New Zealand, Pakistan, and South Africa made it by finishing in the top eight of the 2020-2023 World Cup Super League. The remaining two teams will be identified at the ongoing World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe, which is being contested by Sri Lanka, West Indies, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands, Oman, Scotland, UAE, USA and Zimbabwe.

India to play at nine of the ten venues in league stage, Pakistan in five

The 2023 World Cup begins with a rematch between the 2019 finalists – New Zealand taking on England – while hosts India open their campaign against Australia on October 8 in Chennai.

India then play Afghanistan in Delhi on October 11; Pakistan in Ahmedabad on October 15; Bangladesh in Pune on October 19; New Zealand in Dharamsala on October 22; England in Lucknow on October 29; a qualifier in Mumbai on November 2; South Africa in Kolkata on November 5; and another qualifier in Bengaluru on November 11, which is the penultimate day of the league stage. India travel the most among the ten teams, playing at nine of the ten venues during the league phase.

While most other teams play their nine league matches across most of the ten venues – Australia, for example, are playing at eight venues – Pakistan are playing in only five cities: Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata. The league phase concludes on November 12, with England playing Pakistan in Kolkata and Australia taking on Bangladesh in Pune.

After the tournament opener against England, New Zealand play three matches in the south of India – against a qualifier in Hyderabad on October 9, Bangladesh in Chennai on October 14, and Afghanistan in Chennai on October 18 – before travelling far north to play two matches in Dharamsala, against India on October 22 and Australia on October 28. Their last three league matches are against South Africa in Pune on November 1; Pakistan in Bengaluru on November 4; and the other qualifier in Bengaluru on November 9.

South Africa begin their campaign in the north of India, playing a qualifier in Delhi on October 8, Australia in Lucknow on October 13, and the other qualifier in Dharamsala on October 16. They then travel west to Mumbai to play England on October 21 and Bangladesh on October 24, after which they head south to take on Pakistan in Chennai on October 27. Their last three league games are against New Zealand in Pune (western India) on November 1, against the hosts in Kolkata (eastern India) on November 5, and against Afghanistan in Ahmedabad (western India) on November 10.

Bangladesh’s World Cup starts with two games in Dharamsala – against Afghanistan on October 7 and England on October 10. They then play New Zealand in Bangalore on October 14, India in Pune on October 19, South Africa in Mumbai on October 24, before heading east to Kolkata to play a qualifier on October 28 and Pakistan on October 31. Their last two league games are against the other qualifier in Delhi on November 6, and against Australia in Pune on November 12.

After beginning their third successive World Cup campaign against Bangladesh, Afghanistan play India and England in Delhi on October 11 and 15, then play New Zealand and Pakistan in Chennai on October 18 and 23, before travelling to Pune to play a qualifier on October 30. Their last three league games are against the other qualifier in Lucknow on November 3, Australia in Mumbai on November 7 and South Africa in Ahmedabad on November 10.

Before the tournament begins, the teams will play warm-ups in Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram and Guwahati between September 29 and October 3.

Source: ESPNcricinfo