Besides the major announcement made by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday, the postponement of the T20 World Cup slated to be held in Australia later this year, there was another key change in dates made by the board that met virtually, pertaining to World Cup 2023 which is scheduled to be held in India. The tournament has been postponed by eight months.
The 2023 edition of the 50-over World Cup was originally scheduled to start on February 9 with the final on March 26. It has now been rescheduled and moved to October-November 2023 with the final on November 26.
ICC Chief Executive Manu Sawhney explained that the rescheduling of the dates was done to fit in the qualification process for the tournament.
"Moving the Men’s Cricket World Cup to a later window is a critical element of this and gives us a better chance of maintaining the integrity of the qualification process. This additional time will be used to reschedule games that might be lost because of the pandemic ensuring qualification can be decided on the field of play," he explained.
“Throughout this process we have worked closely with our key stakeholders including governments, Members, broadcasters, partners and medical experts to enable us to reach a collective decision for the good of the game and our fans. I would like to thank everyone involved for their commitment to a safe return to cricket.”
ICC however is confident about hosting the Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021 in New Zealand in February, although they will continue to assess the situation.
