The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the ICC event calendar for the period 2024-2031. Both the 50-year-old World Cup and the T20 World Cup will be expanded to include more teams. In addition, the Champions Cup tournament will be resumed.The International Cricket Council has confirmed that the 50+ World Cup will feature 14 teams and will feature 54 matches in the 2027 and 2031 editions. In addition, the T20 World Cup will feature 20 teams and a total of 55 matches in 2024, 2026, 2028, and 2030.The Champions Cup will feature eight teams and will be held in 2025 and 2029. The International Karate Committee has also reported that more World Test Championship (WTC) finals will be held in 2025, 2027, 2029, and 2031. Between India and New Zealand in Southampton from June 18.There were mixed reactions after the International Criminal Court downgraded the 2019 World Cup in England to 10 teams. While Afghanistan and Bangladesh managed to qualify for the mega event, Ireland, which had been great in previous editions, failed to make that cut.The 2003 World Cup format will be back in the gameThe ICC reports that the 50-year World Cup finals in 2027 and 2031 will follow the format used at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa. Teams will be divided into two groups of seven each. The top three teams in each group will qualify for the Super Six stage, which will be followed by the semi-finals and final.Regarding the T20 World Cup format for the years 2024, 2026, 2028, and 2030, the teams will be divided into four groups of five each. The top two teams in each group will advance to the Super Eight stage, followed by the semi-finals and finals. The shape of the Champions Cup will be the same as the previous versions. There will be two groups of four, the semi-finals and the final.Quoted by ICC Acting Executive Director Jeff Allardyce on the official Cricket Board website:“Confirmation of the ICC event calendar to 2031 is an important step for cricket and will form the basis of our growth strategy for the next decade.”In a related development, the International Chamber of Commerce has given the BCCI until June 28 to respond to an invitation on whether to host the T20 World Cup in India. The event scheduled for later in the year is under serious threat due to the epidemiological situation in India, which has forced the BCCI to suspend the IPL 2021 temporarily.Also Read: India vs England: Michael Vaughan Makes Prediction for Series, Has no Hesitation in Picking Winners
Virat Kohli said on Wednesday that India and New Zealand are "on a par" when it comes to Southampton's conditions for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The teams will play the final starting June 18 at the Hampshire Bowl and leave India for their tour of the UK, which also includes a five-round series against England starting August 4, Wednesday. “The conditions (in England) are as strong for us as New Zealand... We will get on board thinking we are on a level playing field and the team is doing well in every session, hour by hour, I will win that tournament,” Kohli said in a virtual press conference before departure.New Zealand is already in England, playing a series of two Tests against the hosts which started with the first Test at Lords on Wednesday. They are scheduled to finish their second round in Edgbaston on June 14, just four days before the World Test Championships final.However, Kohli said New Zealand had no advantage over the Indians even after they spent a significant amount of time playing in England before the final."It's not the first time we've played in England," Kohli said. "(With) the hunger and the desire to be there... We have no problem having only four training sessions before the final."Indian cricketers Ajinkia Rahane, Umesh Yadav, and Ishant Sharma described the World Test Championship final as a draw for the World Cup final, and both Kohli and India coach Ravi Shastri agreed that what was in the making."For all of us, this is an accumulation of all the hard work of the past five or six years," Kohli said.Regardless of the size of the final match, teams will move from one biosecurity bubble to the next, and Kohli has spoken extensively about the impact of bubble cricket on the mental health of players."With the current structure (going from one vital bubble to the next), it's very difficult for players to stay motivated," Kohli said.“...Being confined to one area (it would be difficult)."Mental health (for players) will enter the picture. There is no space where you can disconnect from the game."The World Test Championship final will follow a series against England, who beat India 4-1 in the final round of 2018. With India winning the Test series in Australia in two back-to-back rounds on the road, could England be a definitive end?Not quite, said Kohli. "(The England series) is not a definitive end for us. We want to stay at the top for the next few years. We worked hard for the final, for us it's just about keeping it high," he said.Also Read: Men's World Cup To Have 14 Teams From 2027, 20-Team T20 WC From 2024: ICC
