The International Cricket Council (ICC) has relocated the upcoming Under-19 World Cup 2024 to South Africa from Sri Lanka, owing to the ongoing suspension of the latter's cricket board. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) was suspended by the ICC immediately after the World Cup as it found the board in "serious breach of its obligations as a Member, in particular, the requirement to manage its affairs autonomously and ensure that there is no government interference in the governance, regulation and/or administration of cricket in Sri Lanka.”
The ICC took the decision in its meeting in Ahmedabad and was unmoved from its stance on the suspension of SLC. The report stated that the cricket in the country will continue but since the suspension is there, the hosting rights have been snatched.
"Funding to SLC will be controlled by the ICC and the ICC Board confirmed Sri Lanka will no longer host the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024, which will now be held in South Africa," ICC said in a statement.
This will be the third time that South Africa will be hosting the tournament after 1998 and the most recent being in 2020. The tournament is set to begin on January 13 and will run till February 9. The defending champions India will begin their campaign on January 14 against Bangladesh, who won the tournament last time when it took place in the rainbow nation in 2020. Teams are divided into two groups and top three teams from each of them will qualify for the Super Six.
Participating teams
Through automatic qualification: Sri Lanka (hosts), Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Ireland, Pakistan, South Africa, West Indies, Zimbabwe
Through regional qualification: Namibia (Africa Regional Qualifier), Nepal, New Zealand (EAP Regional Qualifier), Scotland (Europe Regional Qualifier), USA (Americas Regional Qualifier)
