The International Cricket Council (ICC) is set to unveil the schedule for the 2024 T20 World Cup on Friday at 7 pm IST, bringing forth an exciting debut of a revamped format. With an expansion from 16 to 20 teams, the West Indies and the USA have already secured their spots as hosts. The remaining teams earned their places based on performances from the 2022 edition and the ICC T20I rankings cut-off on November 14.
In a notable departure from the previous global qualifier, the tournament now focuses on regional qualification tournaments, allocating two spots each for Africa, Asia, and Europe, and one spot each for the Americas and East-Asia Pacific regions. Teams such as Ireland, Canada, Namibia, Scotland, Oman, Papua New Guinea, Uganda, and Nepal have successfully qualified through this new pathway.
Unlike the earlier format that included a qualification stage followed by a Super 12 stage and knockouts, the 2024 edition introduces two group stages for the 20 teams. The teams will be divided into five groups of four, with the top two from each group progressing to the Super 8s. The subsequent top two teams from each Super 8 group will then advance to the semi-finals.
While official confirmation is pending, reports suggest that India finds itself in Group A alongside Pakistan, Ireland, USA, and Canada, playing their group stage matches in the USA. The semi-finals are scheduled for June 26 and 27, with the grand finale set to take place on June 29 in Barbados.
The anticipation builds as cricket enthusiasts await the official announcement, providing a fresh twist to the T20 World Cup’s narrative. Stay tuned for further updates on the schedule and fixtures as the cricketing world gears up for this exciting tournament in 2024.
