ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will be the second major ICC tournament in 2021 after the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship, which was held in June. This will be the 7th T20 World Cup, which began in 2007 in South Africa. The tournament will have 16 participants out of which 10 teams are top ten teams in the ICC rankings and six teams qualified through the T20 World Cup Qualifiers. Forty-five matches will be played in total, including preliminary round, super 12, and knockouts.
About The Tournament
The T20 World Cup will be held in the UAE and Oman from 17th October 2021 to 14th November 2021. The tournament was originally scheduled from 18th October 2020 to 15th November 2020 last year in Australia, but it was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. ICC made a decision to host the T20 Men’s World Cup 2022 in Australia instead. The T20 World Cup 2021 was originally supposed to be held in India, but it was shifted to the UAE and Oman due to the Covid-19 pandemic in India. However, ICC has announced that the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) will retain the hosting rights regardless of the venues. ICC has finalized 4 venues for the tournament which are Dubai (Dubai International Stadium), Abu Dhabi (Zayed Cricket Stadium), Sharjah (Sharjah Cricket Stadium), and Muscat (Oman Cricket Academy Ground).
- The first match will be played between Oman and Papua New Guinea at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Ground, Abu Dhabi.
Schedule and Teams
16 teams will be competing in the tournament. The top 8 teams in the ICC Men's T20 Team Rankings have been directly drafted for the Super 12 which will be the second round of the tournament.
The other 8 teams will have to play in Round 1 in order to qualify for the Super 12 stage. These eight teams are further divided into 2 groups - Group A and B, four in each group.
Round 1 (Preliminary Round)
Group A comprises four teams which are Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands, and Namibia. The teams which finish 1st and 2nd from Group A will qualify for the Super 12 stage. The team in the first position will be drafted in Group 1 whereas the team in 2nd position will be drafted in Group 2 of the Super 12.
Group B comprises four teams which are Bangladesh, Oman, Papua New Guinea, and Scotland. The teams which finish 1st and 2nd from Group B will qualify for the Super 12 groups. The team in the first position will be drafted in Group 2 whereas the team in 2nd position will be drafted in Group 1 of the Super 12.
Round 1 Fixtures
| Date | Fixture | Venue |
| 17-Oct-21 | Oman vs Papua New Guinea | Muscat |
| 17-Oct-21 | Bangladesh vs Scotland | Muscat |
| 18-Oct-21 | Ireland vs Netherlands | Abu Dhabi |
| 18-Oct-21 | Sri Lanka vs Namibia | Abu Dhabi |
| 19-Oct-21 | Scotland vs Papua New Guinea | Muscat |
| 19-Oct-21 | Oman vs Bangladesh | Muscat |
| 20-Oct-21 | Namibia vs Netherlands | Abu Dhabi |
| 20-Oct-21 | Sri Lanka vs Ireland | Abu Dhabi |
| 21-Oct-21 | Bangladesh vs Papua New Guinea | Muscat |
| 21-Oct-21 | Oman vs Scotland | Muscat |
| 22-Oct-21 | Namibia vs Ireland | Sharjah |
| 22-Oct-21 | Sri Lanka vs Netherlands | Sharjah |
Round 2
This round will be kicked off with Australia vs South Africa on 23rd October in Abu Dhabi.
The Super 12 stage is further divided into two groups - Group 1 and Group 2.
Group 1 already has Australia, South Africa, England, and West Indies. The first-place team from Group A and the 2nd placed team from Group B will enter this Super 12 group.
Group 2 comprises India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and New Zealand. Two teams qualifying from round 1 will join them. The winner of Group B from round 1 and the 2nd placed team from Group A will enter this Super 12 group.
Schedule for Super 12 Group A
| Date | Fixture | Venue |
| 23-Oct-21 | Australia vs South Africa | Abu Dhabi |
| 23-Oct-21 | England vs West Indies | Dubai |
| 24-Oct-21 | A1 vs B2 | Sharjah |
| 26-Oct-21 | South Africa vs West Indies | Dubai |
| 27-Oct-21 | England vs B2 | Abu Dhabi |
| 28-Oct-21 | Australia vs A1 | Dubai |
| 29-Oct-21 | West Indies vs B2 | Sharjah |
| 30-Oct-21 | South Africa vs A1 | Sharjah |
| 30-Oct-21 | England vs Australia | Dubai |
| 01-Nov-21 | England vs A1 | Sharjah |
| 02-Nov-21 | South Africa vs B2 | Abu Dhabi |
| 04-Nov-21 | Australia vs B2 | Dubai |
| 04-Nov-21 | West Indies vs A1 | Abu Dhabi |
| 06-Nov-21 | Australia vs West Indies | Abu Dhabi |
| 06-Nov-21 | England vs South Africa | Sharjah |
Schedule for Super 12 Group B
| Date | Fixture | Venue |
| 24-Oct-21 | India vs Pakistan | Dubai |
| 25-Oct-21 | Afghanistan vs B1 | Sharjah |
| 26-Oct-21 | Pakistan vs New Zealand | Sharjah |
| 27-Oct-21 | B1 vs A2 | Abu Dhabi |
| 29-Oct-21 | Afghanistan vs Pakistan | Dubai |
| 31-Oct-21 | Afghanistan vs A2 | Abu Dhabi |
| 31-Oct-21 | India vs New Zealand | Dubai |
| 02-Nov-21 | Pakistan vs A2 | Abu Dhabi |
| 03-Nov-21 | New Zealand vs B1 | Dubai |
| 03-Nov-21 | India vs Afghanistan | Abu Dhabi |
| 05-Nov-21 | New Zealand vs A2 | Sharjah |
| 05-Nov-21 | India vs B1 | Dubai |
| 07-Nov-21 | New Zealand vs Afghanistan | Abu Dhabi |
| 07-Nov-21 | Pakistan vs B1 | Sharjah |
| 08-Nov-21 | India vs A2 | Dubai |
- The teams which finish 1st and 2nd in each group will qualify for the semi-finals matches, to be played on 10th November and 11th November;
- The final will be played at the Dubai Cricket Stadium on 14th November between the winners of the semi-finals.
Semi-Final and Final Fixtures
| Date | Fixture | Type | Venue |
| 10 Nov 2021 | TBC vs TBC | 1st Semi-Final | Abu Dhabi |
| 11 Nov 2021 | TBC vs TBC | 2nd Semi-Final | Dubai |
| 14 Nov 2021 | TBC vs TBC | Final | Dubai |
*TBC stands for To Be Confirmed
All in all, it promises to be an exciting show for the fans. ICC are expected to allow limited spectators in the stadium if everything goes well with the IPL (Indian Premier League) which will finish just before the beginning of the T20 world cup.
