In an announcement on Tuesday by The International Cricket Council (ICC), India will face West Indies and South Africa in warm-up matches in preparation for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup scheduled to be played in UAE.
Two practice games will be played by all the 10 teams that have qualified for the 2024 tournament.
These matches are four days long (from September 28 – October 1), twenty-twenty overs per side, but will not have official international T20 status.It means all teams can bring in all 15 members of their squad. No two sides from the same pool will play each other.Teams from Group A of the Women’s T20 World Cup are Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and India with Group B featuring England, Bangladesh, Scotland and West Indies.
September 28th sees Pakistan take on Scotland whilst Sri Lanka clash against Bangladesh. The next day pits Australia against traditional rivals England and India versus West Indies who were crowned victors at that time in 2016.
Last time around, in the final, Australia beat South Africa by 19 runs and won their sixth title. India reached the semi-finals only to lose to Australia by five runs.
The Warm-up fixture schedule is:
- 28 September, Saturday – Pakistan versus Scotland – Sevens Dubai
- 28 September, Saturday – Sri Lanka versus Bangladesh – ICCA1 Dubai
- 29 September, Sunday – New Zealand versus South Africa – Sevens Dubai
- 29 September, Sunday – India versus West Indies – ICCA2 Dubai
- 29 September, Sunday – Australia v England – ICCA1 Dubai
- 30 September, Monday– Sri Lanka vs Scotland- Sevens Dubai
- 30 September Monday: Bangladesh v Pakistan– ICCA2 Dubai
- 1 October Tuesday: West Indies v Australia–Sevens Dubai
- 1 October Tuesday: England v New Zealand–ICCA2 Dubai
- 1 October Tuesday: South Africa v India–ICCA1Dubai.
After a shift in venue from Bangladesh to UAE due to logistical challenges during organizing of this event. The ICC had to release new fixtures for the tournament that will be held at both Sharjah and Dubai grounds. Despite being relocated therefore all teams still remain within their respective groups
Sri Lanka and Scotland qualified for this tournament through the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier held earlier this year at Abu Dhabi.
The other two teams to start witnessing action in the preliminary rounds are joined by Zimbabwe and Ireland. The semi-finals will take place on October 17 and 18 while Dubai will host the final match on October 20.
The ICC points out that the warm-up matches are crucial in order to help teams acclimatize as well as finalize their best combinations before the main event.
