CHAMPIONING WORLD CRICKET // CRICKET
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T20 RANKINGS SHOW THE WAY FORWARD
More than 50 women’s teams and 80 men’s sides now enjoy T20I status with increased opportunities to play regular internationals in a sustainable and affordable way
The new global MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings were launched in October 2018 with 46 teams. That number has since risen to 54 with the likes of Bhutan, Kuwait, Nigeria and USA joining the list.
The decision to award T20I status to all Members – in the men’s and women’s game – has already driven activity across the world because the matches now have increased standing and importance. There are 229 official and unofficial matches scheduled in 2019, compared to 118 in 2017.
The MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings contain 80 teams now, including the likes of China, Brazil, Rwanda and Czech Republic. The move across both men’s and women’s cricket is part of the wider strategic aim of using the T20 format to globalise the game. New minimum standards will be introduced making it as easy as possible for Members to play international cricket in a sustainable and affordable way.
The ICC Women’s World T20 2018 engaged the host islands of the Caribbean like no event previously. There were sell-out crowds in Antigua for semi-finals and final. The tournament was the latest outstanding showcase for the women’s game which continues to grow in quality and profile.
The next tournament, in Australia in February/ March 2020, will be referred to as the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Likewise, the men’s event later in the year will be the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The change in naming convention is designed to ensure that T20’s status – as the format to globalise the game – is on a par with the pinnacle events of the other two formats.
In the 50-over game, ODI status was awarded to USA, Oman, Namibia and Papua New Guinea while Nepal played their first One-Day International against Netherlands, who had regained their ODI status in March 2018, in August in Amstelveen.
A new simplified 50-over league-based qualification structure for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup was agreed in October which will increase the amount of cricket played as part of the Road to India 2023 to 372 matches across a two to three year qualification period.
There was some positive news for Pakistan’s quest to host regular international cricket again with West Indies women playing three T20 Internationals in Karachi in February.
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