ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 Schedule

The highly anticipated Cricket World Cup 2023 is set to kick off on October 5, featuring a thrilling clash between defending champions England and last edition’s runner-up New Zealand in Ahmedabad. The tournament will take place at various venues across India, with the Narendra Modi Stadium hosting the blockbuster India vs Pakistan match on October 14. The grand finale will also be held at the world’s largest cricket stadium on November 19, while the two semifinals are scheduled for November 15 at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium and November 16 at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.

This edition of the World Cup will see all 48 matches played across 10 venues, marking the fourth time the prestigious ODI cricket tournament has come to India and the first since the national team’s triumphant victory in the 2011 World Cup. The matches will be held in Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Pune, Dharamsala, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and Ahmedabad. Notably, the historic Rajiv Gandhi Stadium, which has previously hosted 5 Tests, 7 ODIs, and 3 T20Is, is the only renowned international venue where India won’t have a league match. The semifinals will have a reserve day in case of any interruptions.

Eight of the ten teams participating in the World Cup had already qualified, while the remaining two secured their spots through the World Cup Qualifiers. The tournament will follow a round-robin format, with each team playing against the other nine. The top four teams from the group stage will advance to the semifinals. Prior to the main event, warm-up matches will be held from September 29 to October 3 in Guwahati, Thiruvananthapuram, and Hyderabad.

India’s campaign will commence on October 8 at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium, where they will face a formidable Australian team. Apart from Australia and Pakistan, India will face tough challenges from New Zealand in Dharamsala and England in Lucknow, the only two teams that defeated them in the 2019 World Cup. India’s sole league match against England in the previous edition ended in defeat at Edgbaston, followed by New Zealand eliminating them in a rain-affected semifinal at Manchester after a match that spanned over 24 hours.

The revised schedule announcement comes after a two-week delay from the original dates. The initial plan was to announce the World Cup schedule during the World Test Championship final, but it was postponed due to the buzz surrounding the India-Australia Test match at The Oval. Reports suggested that the rescheduling was prompted by Pakistan’s request to change the dates of their matches against Australia in Bengaluru on October 20 and Afghanistan in Chennai three days later. However, the BCCI allegedly declined their request, as evident from the released schedule.