Seven cities to host 2022 T20 WC, final in Melbourne
The International Cricket Council (ICC), on Tuesday, announced the venues for the 2022 T20 World Cup. A total of seven cities in Australia will host the showpiece event comprising 45 matches, with the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) hosting the final on November 13. The semi-finals will be held in Sydney and Adelaide. Meanwhile, Perth, Brisbane, Geelong, and Hobart are the other hosts.
Why does it matter?
The 2022 edition of T20 World Cup will begin on October 16, just 335 days after the 2021 event concluded in Dubai. Australia, who won their maiden T20 World Cup after defeating New Zealand, will begin their title defense. No team has defended this title so far in the tournament's history. Australia have an opportunity to achieve this feat on their home soil.
A look at the key details
The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) will host the first semi-final on November 9. This venue hosted the semi-finals for the 1992 and 2015 50-over World Cups. Meanwhile, the other semi-final will take place at the Adelaide Oval a day later. Adelaide will host a semi-final (global event) for the first time. The venue hosted a World Cup quarter-final in 2015.
ICC had postponed the 2020 T20 WC
The 2022 T20 World Cup was supposed to be held in 2020. However, the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the tournament to 2022, as India were scheduled to host the event in 2021. However, that event later moved to Oman and the UAE.
2022 T20 WC: Decoding the qualification scenario
The top eight teams will qualify directly for the 2022 T20 World Cup Super 12 stage. They will be joined by four other sides after the qualifying round. England, Pakistan, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh are the automatic qualifiers. Meanwhile, Scotland and Namibia will join the West Indies and Sri Lanka in the first round.
Australian and English players arrive in Brisbane
In another development, the members of Australia's Test squad, who were part of the T20 World Cup campaign, arrived in Brisbane on Tuesday. Interestingly, the Australians and members of England's Ashes squad traveled on the same flight. Both sides will undergo a 14-day quarantine in a hotel in the Gold Coast. However, the players will be allowed to train under strict bio-secure protocols.
