India, Pakistan To Clash On October 15 as Tentative Schedule For 2023 World Cup is Out
India will host the ICC ODI World Cup [Source: Twitter]
As per emerging reports, arch rivals India and Pakistan will cross swords against each other on October 15 in the much-awaited ODI World Cup scheduled in India later this year. If sources be believed, the finalists of the previous edition, England and New Zealand, will take on each other in the tournament opener on October 5.
It's speculated that both the first and final match of the tournament will be hosted by the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad. Host India will play their first match against Australia at the MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai.
The report published in Cricbuzz also suggests that Pakistan Cricket Board has agreed to participate in the World Cup and their matches will likely be conducted in four venues- Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.
Apparently, the BCCI will release the official schedule only after the IPL concludes, after consulting with the concerned authorities.
Notably, there will be ten teams participating in the World Cup comprising 48 matches to be played between October 5 and November 19. Apart from the aforementioned four venues, there are eight grounds- Kolkata, Delhi, Indore, Dharamsala, Guwahati, Rajkot, Raipur and Mumbai- shortlisted to host the showpiece event.
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Talking about the qualification scenario, India, England, Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan, South Africa, Pakistan and Bangladesh have already secured their place in the main event. The rest of the teams, including West Indies, Sri Lanka and Ireland, will battle it out in the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe in June-July for the remaining two spots in the tournament.
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