UNITED KINGDOM. Birmingham: On Tuesday, February 1, ICC (International Cricket Council) & Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) confirmed that cricket had become the first discipline to make public the complete line-up for CWG. The competition will be played in a league-cum-knockout format.
The schedule for the cricket event was previously announced in 2021, with one final spot being vacant. Last week, Sri Lanka women won the ICC’S Commonwealth Games (CWG) qualifier in Kuala Lumpur, to complete the line-up of eight teams that will take part in the women’s T20 cricket event at Birmingham.
The other teams in the arena are Australia, Barbados (Caribbean representative), England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan & South Africa. All matches will be played at Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham & which will hold T20 international status.
Schedule
| Group A | Group B |
| July 29 | July 30 |
| Australia vs India Pakistan vs Barbados | New Zealand vs South Africa England vs Sri Lanka |
| July 31 | August 2 |
| India vs Pakistan Australia vs Barbados | England vs South Africa Sri Lanka vs New Zealand |
| August 3 | August 4 |
| Australia vs Pakistan India vs Barbados | South Africa vs Sri Lanka England vs New Zealand |
The semi-finals is scheduled on August 6 followed by the bronze medal match and final on August 7.
Qualifications
Qualification was decided by Women’s T20 international rankings. England qualified automatically as hosts. West Indies adjudged to be ineligible to compete as a regional qualification tournament got canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, Barbados qualified as defending champions in the Caribbean domestic T20 tournament. Sri Lanka won the ICC’s CWG Qualifier tournament beating Bangladesh by 22 runs in the final.
India’s schedule for the games
India will face Australia in the blockbuster opening game on July 29, under the captaincy of Harmanpreet Kaur. Their last major clash was the final of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020, where Australia beat India by 85 runs.
After this big game, the Indian team is supposed to face their traditional rivals Pakistan on July 31. On August 3, India will play against Barbados.
Looking down the history, cricket has featured only once in the CWG, in 1998 in Kuala Lumpur. It was a 50-over event for men. Shaun Pollock’s South Africa won the gold medal then, with Australia winning silver & New Zealand bronze.
Besides, the Birmingham Commonwealth Games will be held from July 28 to August 8. This will be the first time in the multi-sport event history that more medals will be awarded to women than that of men.
Also Read: Tim David’s Half-Century Powers Multan Sultans to Victory
