The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is starting today. The Indian Cricket Board BCCI hosts the tournament. They are hosting the tournament in Oman and the United Arab Emirates due to the bad Covid situation in India. Experts fear that the third wave of Covid-19 may come to India at any time. That is why the BCCI is hosting the T20 World Cup in Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
Format
Sixteen teams will participate in the ICC T20 World Cup. This tournament will be played in two rounds. The top 8 teams in the ICC World T20 ranking will play in the Super Round. The rest eight will play in the 1st round(Group Stage).
There are two groups in the 1st round. Each group contains four teams. They will play against each other in their respective group. The top two teams from both groups will qualify in the Super Round. As a result, Super Round will start with twelve teams. There are also two groups in the Super Round. Each group contains six teams in the Super round. They are,
- Group 1: England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, A1, and B2.
- Group 2: India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, A2, and B1.
The top two teams from both groups will qualify for the semi-final of this tournament.
Prizes in this tournament
The champion of the ICC T20 World Cup will get $1.6 million, and the runners-up will get $800,000. On the other hand, every semi-finalist will receive $400,000 each. The winners of the Super Round and 1st Round will receive $40,000 for each.
Today’s Matches
Two matches will be played today in the first round. Home team Oman will face Papua New Guinea at Al Amerat Cricket Ground. On the other side, Bangladesh will play against Scotland in the Group B of the 1st Round.
Bangladesh are favorite in their groups. However, Bangladesh played only one T20 match against Scotland in 2012. In this match, Scotland beat them by 3 wickets. But, Bangladesh have become stronger in recent years. They have won against New Zealand and Australia in their home series. The Bangladesh captain Mahmudullah Riyad spoke yesterday in a press conference. He said,
We have lost two practice matches but it won’t have any effect and we are ready to go for (Sunday’s) game. Our confidence is intact and I hope we will be able to play our best cricket.