ICC T20 World Cup 2021, which was the 7th T20i World Cup was supposed to be played in Australia. Due to the pandemic, this T20 World Cup was shifted to India. This was decided by ICC back in 2020. But now as India is still suffering from the COVID-19 badly so International Cricket Council finally decided to shift this year’s World Cup to Oman and UAE as they have already postponed it once.
ICC CEO Geoff Allardice said, “Our priority is to deliver the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 safely, in full, and in its current window. Whilst we are incredibly disappointed not to be hosting the event in India, the decision gives us the certainty we need to stage the event in a country that is a proven international host of multi-team events in a bio-secure environment. We will work closely with the BCCI, the Emirates Cricket Board, and Oman Cricket to ensure fans can enjoy a wonderful celebration of cricket.”
No doubt that the event is shifted to Emirates but the hosting rights are still with India. ICC has clearly mentioned in their statement that BCCI still holds all the rights of hosting the event in the UAE and Oman.
Pakistan Super League is already been played in Abu Dhabi last month and the Indian Premier League is also expected to be played in Emirates as well. Therefore these stadiums were the best present choice for International Cricket Council right now.
ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Teams
A total of 16 teams participate in the event. This number of teams is supposed to be increased by 2024 as per a report by ICC. These are made according to their ICC rankings as a team. Following are the all ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Teams.
- England
- India
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- Australia
- South Africa
- Afghanistan
- West Indies
- Sri Lanka
- Bangladesh
- Netherlands
- Ireland
- Namibia
- Oman
- Scotland
- Papua New Guinea
ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Schedule
A total of 45 matches will be played in ICC T20 World Cup 2021.
| Match | Date | Teams | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oct 17, 2021 | Oman Vs Paua New Guinea | First Round |
| 2 | Oct 17, 2021 | Bangladesh vs Scotland | First Round |
| 3 | Oct 18, 2021 | Ireland Vs Netherlands | First Round |
| 4 | Oct 18, 2021 | Sri Lanka Vs Namibia | First Round |
| 5 | Oct 19, 2021 | Scotland Vs Papua New Guinea | First Round |
| 6 | Oct 19, 2021 | Oman Vs Bangladesh | First Round |
| 7 | Oct 20, 2021 | Namibia Vs Netherlands | First Round |
| 8 | Oct 20, 2021 | Sri Lanks Vs Ireland | First Round |
| 9 | Oct 21, 2021 | Papua New Guinea Vs Bangladesh | First Round |
| 10 | Oct 21, 2021 | Scotland Vs Oman | First Round |
| 11 | Oct 22, 2021 | Irelands Vs Namibia | First Round |
| 12 | Oct 22, 2021 | Sri Lanka Vs netherlands | First Round |
| 13 | Oct 23, 2021 | Australia Vs South Africa | Super 12 |
| 14 | Oct 23, 2021 | England Vs West Indies | Super 12 |
| 15 | Oct 24, 2021 | TBC Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 16 | Oct 24, 2021 | Pakistan Vs India | Super 12 |
| 17 | Oct 25, 2021 | Afghanistan Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 18 | Oct 26, 2021 | South Africa Vs West Indies | Super 12 |
| 19 | Oct 26, 2021 | New Zealand Vs Pakistan | Super 12 |
| 20 | Oct 27, 2021 | England Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 21 | Oct 27, 2021 | TBC Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 22 | Oct 28, 2021 | Australia Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 23 | Oct 29, 2021 | West Indies Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 24 | Oct 29, 2021 | Pakistan Afghanistan | Super 12 |
| 25 | Oct 30, 2021 | South Africa Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 26 | Oct 30, 2021 | England Vs Australia | Super 12 |
| 27 | Oct 31, 2021 | Afghanistan Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 28 | Oct 31, 2021 | India Vs New Zealand | Super 12 |
| 29 | Nov 01, 2021 | TBC Vs England | Super 12 |
| 30 | Nov 02, 2021 | South Africa Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 31 | Nov 02, 2021 | Pakistan Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 32 | Nov 03, 2021 | New Zealand Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 33 | Nov 03, 2021 | India Vs Afghanistan | Super 12 |
| 34 | Nov 04, 2021 | Australia VS TBC | Super 12 |
| 35 | Nov 04, 2021 | West Indies Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 36 | Nov 05, 2021 | New Zealand Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 37 | Nov 05, 2021 | India Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 38 | Nov 06, 2021 | Australia Vs West Indies | Super 12 |
| 39 | Nov 06, 2021 | England Vs South Africa | Super 12 |
| 40 | Nov 07, 2021 | New Zealand Vs Afghanistan | Super 12 |
| 41 | Nov 07, 2021 | Pakistan Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 42 | Nov 08, 2021 | India Vs TBC | Super 12 |
| 43 | Nov 10, 2021 | TBC Vs TBC | Semi Final 1 |
| 44 | Nov 11, 2021 | TBC Vs TBC | Semi-Final 2 |
| 45 | Nov 14, 2021 | TBC Vs TBC | Final |
ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Rules
A total of 16 teams participate in ICC T20 World Cup 2021 as mentioned earlier. These teams are selected according to their T20i team rankings. The top 16 teams are selected for the world cup. The Top 8 teams fall directly into the top 8 competition while the other 8 teams play the qualifying round. The top 8 of T20i right now are England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, Australia, South Africa, Afghanistan, and West Indies.
In the qualifying round, the teams are divided into two groups named Group A and Group B. both the groups have 4 teams each. Two teams from each team qualify for the next round which is called Super 12. In the Super 12 round, there are already two groups named Group 1 and Group 2. The qualifying teams from the qualifying round are then included in these groups.
In the Super 12 stage, each team plays 1 match against all the teams in the respective group. The top 2 teams from both the groups qualify for the Semi-finals and the winner of the Semi-final qualifies for the all-important final which will be played in UAE this year.
ICC World Cup 2021 Favourite Teams
As the ICC World Cup, 2021 will be played in UAE and Oman this time so Asian teams will have a great benefit from it. The tracks in UAE are spin-friendly so spinner will take charge in this year’s event. Teams with a better spinner will have more chances to top the points table.
When we talk of having the best spinner the first team that came into mind is none other than Afghanistan. Having Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rehman, and Noor Ahmed in their squad give them a lot of strength. All the teams must remain repaired to face the spin sensation of Afghanistan.
According to our predictions, India and Pakistan will remain favorites for this year’s ICC World Cup 2021. First of all both these teams will have played a lot of T20 cricket before the world cup in the shape of PSL and IPL. Also, these two teams have batters who can face the spin quite easily.
ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Venues
As ICC T20 World Cup 2021 is shifted to UAE and Oman so the tournament will be played in 4 different venues. 3 venues are in the United Arab Emirates while the other one is in Oman. The venues are:
- Dubai International Stadium
- Sharjah Stadium
- Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
- Oman Cricket Academy Ground
President BCCI Sourav Ganguly said: “The BCCI is looking forward to hosting the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 tournament in UAE and Oman. We would have been happier hosting it in India but considering the uncertainty due to the Covid 19 situation and the importance of a world championship, the BCCI will now continue to host this tournament in UAE and Oman. The BCCI is looking forward to creating a spectacle.”
Vice President Emirates Cricket Board, Khalid Al Zarooni said: “Emirates Cricket Board is honored that the BCCI (Board of Cricket Control India) and the ICC (International Cricket Council) have entrusted us with staging and delivering the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The UAE’s reputation as being a safe country in which to host high-profile sporting events is a strong complement to our government’s unwavering commitment to implementing and monitoring effective health practices during the pandemic. Having hosted several high-profile tournaments in recent months our team is well-prepared and ready to mobilize to ensure the success of the T20 World Cup.”
ICC T20 World Cup History
| Year | Venue | Winner | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | South Africa | India | Pakistan |
| 2009 | England | Pakistan | Sri Lanka |
| 2010 | West Indies | England | Australia |
| 2012 | Sri Lanka | West Indies | Sri Lanka |
| 2014 | Bangladesh | Sri Lanka | India |
| 2016 | India | West Indies | England |
There are been a lot of facts related to ICC T20 World Cup history. India was the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup champion. They won the first-ever ICC World Cup under the captaincy for MS Dhoni back in 2007. Pakistan was the runner-up in that tournament but they fought back in the next tournament and won the ICC T20 World Cup in 2009 under the captaincy of Younis Khan.
Sri Lanka has played the most number of finals in the T20 World Cups that is 3. They have won only once by defeating India at Dhaka back in 2014. West Indies have won this World Cup twice which is not done by any other team yet. Maybe their record will be balanced this year.
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