3 countries which should try hosting the Women's T20 World Cup if Bangladesh can't ft. Sri Lanka
Bangladesh, who was supposed to be the host of the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup, slated to be held in October later this year, is experiencing immense domestic turmoil at the moment. The ICC may decide to shift the tournament out of the country if it becomes clear to them that the latter will not be able to host it owing to the prolonged disturbances resulting from arson, pillage and riots.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had to leave the country in a huff on Monday, August 5, owing to the civic turmoil and take refuge in India. The country's military has signalled that an interim government will now be in place.
In this listicle, we try to pick three countries that can emerge as frontrunners to host the tournament if Bangladesh is deemed to not be feasible:
#1 Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka ought to be the first choice for the ICC if they decide to move the tournament away from Bangladesh as they won the Women's Asia Cup held recently; this recognition will go a long way in building their confidence.
The conditions in Sri Lanka are not much different from that of Bangladesh, with spin often ruling the roost more often than not across all venues. If the rains of November stay put for some time, it will be a good time to play cricket in the island nation.
Sri Lanka has a lot of good venues for international cricket and the board will be more than happy to organize this tournament. The ICC can take the chance of awarding it to them also to boost the host nation's revenue.
#2 India
India is undoubtedly one of the biggest favorites to be the alternate venue if Bangladesh is passed over given the proximity of the two countries and how much of experience the former has had in hosting these tournaments.
India has almost perfect cricket weather in October, with autumn just about to make way for winter, and it will be exciting for all cricket lovers to see their home team battle it out with the best in the world.
Bengaluru, Chennai and New Delhi have already hosted a lot of women's matches, be it in the WPL or international cricket, and the BCCI can be trusted to go to great lengths to make this tournament a grand success.
#3 South Africa
South Africa can also be considered by the ICC if they decide to move the tournament away from Bangladesh owing to the dangerous domestic issues plaguing the latter.
Although they hosted the previous edition of the Women's T20 World Cup in 2023, they might be given the opportunity to do so this year as well given that they have always stood up at short notice to host key events.
The IPL in 2009 was one of the biggest successes of South Africa hosting a neutral event, and if the T20 World Cup is allotted to them for the second time in a row, it will give a massive fillip to the women's sport in the country.