T20 WC to start in UAE from October 17, says report
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The T20 World Cup will be staged in the UAE, with a possible start date of October 17 following the conclusion of the Indian Premier League there, according to media sources.
While the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had requested a June 28 deadline to advise the International Cricket Council (ICC) of their preparedness to host the showpiece event, Cricket based website ESPNcricinfo reports that the World T20 will be hosted in the UAE from October 17 to November 14.
The first round of the T20 World Cup, according to them, will be split across two groups and played in the UAE and Oman. Round 1, which will include 12 matches, will comprise eight teams from which four (top two from each group) would qualify for the Super 12s.
Four teams from this lot of eight - Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland, Namibia, Oman, Papua New Guinea - will then progress to the Super 12s, joining the top eight ranked T20I teams.
The Super 12s phase, comprising 30 matches, is scheduled to start from October 24. The Super 12s, where teams will be split across two groups of six each, will be played at three venues in the UAE - Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. This will be followed by three play-off games - the two semi-finals and the final.
The idea behind sharing first round matches with neighbouring Oman is to allow the BCCI time to hand over the main venues to the ICC well ahead of the time-frame for the Super 12 stage.
However, the BCCI was obliged to stop the IPL at the halfway point in May due of the dire pandemic situation in India, which was further exacerbated by a second wave this summer.
