The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the T20 World Cup 2022 fixtures on Friday. The Indian team is set to face off against their arch-rivals Pakistan in their opening encounter of the World Cup on October 23 at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The T20 World Cup encounter at MCG will be the first World Cup match between the two Asian giants at the iconic stadium. Previously, the two teams faced off at the Adelaide Oval in the ICC World Cup 2015. A total of 16 international teams will clash in 45 matches as the pinnacle global event in men’s T20 cricket comes to Australia for the first time. The format of the World Cup remains the same as last year’s World cup.
ICC T20 World Cup 2022 will play a huge role in inspiring our next generation of players: ICC CEO Geoff Allardice
The 8th edition of the mega T20 event will be played across seven venues in Adelaide, Brisbane, Geelong, Hobart, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney, with the final to be played November 13 at the MCG. The tournament will commence with the renewed rivalry between the defending ICC T20 Champions Australia and the runner’s up New Zealand on October 22.
The edition in Australia was planned to take place in 2020. However, the Covid-19 pandemic forced its postponement to 2022. The 2021 T20 World Cup, originally scheduled in India, was played in the United Arab Emirates and Oman between October/November.
“T20 is the global growth format for cricket and the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 will play a huge role in inspiring our next generation of players and fans as the world’s best players descend on Australia and showcase the very best of our sport. The release of fixtures is always a great moment in the delivery of a World Cup as fans start to get excited about opening games, head to head, and knock-out stages,” ICC CEO Geoff Allardice said.
The Indian team look for redemption under a new leader
The Indian team is placed in Group 2 where they will be joined by Pakistan, Bangladesh, and South Africa, plus the winner of Group B and runner-up in Group A from the First Round. India had a poor ICC T20 World Cup where they were knocked out in the first stage itself. They also lost to Pakistan for the first time in World Cups. This time an Indian team will step into the mega event under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, who took over from Virat Kohli in November last year.
The Men in Blue will then take on the runner-up of Group A four on October 27, followed by a fixture against South Africa three days later on October 30, which is the second match of a double-header at Perth’s Optus Stadium. India will square off against Bangladesh on November 2 at the Adelaide Oval before facing Group B winners on November 6 at the MCG.
First Round Groups
Group A: Sri Lanka, Namibia, two qualifiers
Group B: West Indies, Scotland, two qualifiers
Super 12 stage
Group 1: Australia, Afghanistan, England, New Zealand, A1, B2
Group 2: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, South Africa, B1, A2
India’s fixtures in the ICC World Cup 2022
India vs Pakistan, Melbourne Cricket Ground – October 23
India vs Group A runner up, Sydney Cricket Ground – October 27
India vs South Africa, Perth Stadium – October 30
India vs Bangladesh, Adelaide Oval – November 2
India vs Group B winner, Melbourne Cricket Ground – November 6
Highlights:
• ICC announces the schedule of the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australi.
• India will commence their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on October 23 at the MCG.
