According to a reliable report, it is learned that the 2021 ICC World T20 will begin on October 17 with the final of the tournament set to be played on November 14.
The Board of Cricket for Control in India has retained the hosting rights for the 2021 edition of the biggest international tournament in the shortest format but is expected to change the venue from India to UAE. The BCCI is expected to write about the same to the International Cricket Council in the first week of July.
Round 1 of the tournament will begin on October 17 with eight teams (Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ireland, the Netherlands, Scotland, Namibia, Oman, and Papua New Guniea) competing for the four available spots in the Super 12s round set to begin from October 24.
The Super 12s round already has eight set teams including hosts India, England, New Zealand, Pakistan, Australia, South Africa, Afghanistan, and defending champions West Indies. Four more teams will qualify for the Super 12s round that will have 30 matches after the teams will be divided into two groups of six teams each.
The Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi, the Dubai International Stadium, and the Sharjah Cricket Stadium are the only established venues in the UAE and the matches will be divided between the three stadiums for the 2021 World T20.
The second half of the 2021 Indian Premier League season will also be played in the UAE from September 19 to October 15 and some pundits and experts have expressed their concern over the short gap between the two biggest T20 tournaments in the world.
BCCI Vice-president Rajeev Shukla quashed the concerns in an interview with IANS and said,
“There should be no problem with the gap. The first phase of the T20 World Cup will comprise qualifiers. So the main (test playing nations) teams like India and others will get sufficient gap.”