14-team World Cup in 2027, 2031; T20 World Cup to feature 20 sides from 2024 to 2030: ICC
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the schedule of ICC events for the period 2024-2031. Both the 50-over World Cup and the T20 World Cup will be expanded to include more sides. Further, the Champions Trophy tournament will also be re-introduced.
ICC have confirmed that the 50-over World Cup will include 14 teams and feature a total of 54 matches in the 2027 and 2031 editions. Also, the T20 World Cup will see 20 sides and a total of 55 matches in 2024, 2026, 2028 and 2030.
The Champions Trophy will feature eight teams and will be held in 2025 and 2029. The ICC further informed that further World Test Championship (WTC) finals will be hosted in 2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031. The inaugural WTC final is all set to be played between India and New Zealand in Southampton from June 18.
There were mixed reactions after the ICC reduced the 2019 World Cup in England to a 10-team affair. While Afghanistan and Bangladesh managed to qualify for the mega event, Ireland, who had been impressive in previous editions, failed to make the cut.
2003 World Cup format to come back into play
The 50-over World Cup in 2027 and 2031 will follow the format used in the 2003 World Cup that was held in South Africa, informed ICC. The teams will be split into two groups of seven each. The top three sides from each group will then progress to the Super Six stage, which will be followed by semi-finals and final.
As for the format of the T20 World Cup for 2024, 2026, 2028 and 2030, the teams will be divided into four groups of five each. The top two sides from each group will progress to the Super Eights stage, followed by the semi-finals and a final. The Champions Trophy format will be like the preceding editions. There will be two groups of four, the semi-finals and the final.
ICC Acting Chief Executive Geoff Allardice was quoted as saying on the cricket board’s official website:
“Having the ICC event schedule confirmed through to 2031 is a significant step forward for cricket and will form the basis of our growth strategy for the next decade.”
In a related development, ICC have given BCCI time until June 28 to take a call on whether it would host the T20 World Cup in India. The event scheduled to be held later in the year is under serious threat owing to the pandemic situation in India, which forced the BCCI to halt IPL 2021 temporarily.