Another not so subtle exercise to ensure more India games? More than likely.
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and USA will be played in a different format, with the 20 participating teams divided into four groups of five teams each.
The top two teams from each of the four groups will progress to a Super Eight phase, where they will be further divided into two groups of four each.
The top two teams in each of the two Super Eights groups will qualify for the semi-finals followed by the final.
For the record, the 2021 and 2022 editions of the T20 World Cup, the first round had two groups of four which included teams that entered the tournament through the qualifiers and teams that finished between ninth and 12th in the previous edition. The top two teams from each group in the first round then joined the rest of the eight teams that had already qualified for the Super 12 stage.
Twelve teams have so far already sealed their spots in the 2024 World Cup.
The US and West Indies qualified automatically as the hosts of the tournament. Reigning champions England along with Pakistan, India, New Zealand, Australia, Sri Lanka, South Africa and Netherlands have also qualified, having finished in the top eight of the 2022 edition.
Afghanistan and Bangladesh are the other two teams to book their berths, because they were the next best on ICC’s T20I rankings on the cutoff date of November 14.
The remaining eight spots for the 2024 tournament will be decided in regional play, the ICC said in a press release.
“While South Africa claimed 2024 qualification by virtue of their top eight finish, Zimbabwe were unable to capitalise on their strong start to the campaign, finishing last in the Super 12 group to be sent back to regional qualification,” the ICC said in the release. Africa, Asia and Europe will have two qualification spots, with one spot for both the Americas and East-Asia-Pacific regions.
England beat Pakistan in the final in this edition.
