ICC Big Announcement: 2027 ODI World Cup Qualifier Schedule Announced, Format Changed

2027 ODI World Cup schedule: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has intensified preparations for the upcoming 2027 ODI World Cup and has announced the World Cup qualifier schedule, giving a big news for cricket fans. Qualifiers between 10 teams will be played from February 22 to March 23, 2027, before the Mahakumbh to be held next year. This time the World Cup will be seen in a completely new format, with a total of 14 teams taking to the field for this biggest crown of cricket

Where will the qualifiers be played?

However, the ICC has announced the dates of the qualifier matches, but it has not yet been announced in which country or on which ground these matches will be played. According to the new rules, the team that wins the qualifier will directly secure its place in the main group of 14 teams

new format and the thrill of 'Super Series'

The format of the tournament has been made very interesting this time. The second, third and fourth placed teams in the qualifiers will have to play a special "Super Series" in the first round of the World Cup. The team that wins the round of this Super Series will get a direct entry in the top-12

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three countries will jointly host the World Cup

Let us tell you that this ODI World Cup of 2027 is not going to be hosted by any one country, but three countries - South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia - jointly. The thrill of the World Cup will run from October 4 to November 21 and all the matches will be played in a total of 12 different stadiums. The maximum number of matches will be played in South Africa, 3 in Zimbabwe and 1 in Namibia>< Which 10 teams will clash in the

qualifier?

A total of 10 teams are scheduled to participate in this qualifier round. The ten teams will be decided on September 30, 2026. The following teams will face each other till this date:

The two "full member" teams at the bottom of the ODI rankings (excluding hosts South Africa and Zimbabwe)

CWC League 2 Top 4 Teams

Top 4 teams of the World Cup Qualifier Playoffs

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West Indies are hanging the sword again

You may recall that the two-time champions West Indies could not qualify for the last ODI World Cup of 2023. Now once again they are in great danger of being knocked out of the World Cup. The Caribbean team is currently ranked 10th in the ODI rankings. They have only 2 ODIs left to play before the cut-off date of September 30, and both of these matches are against India

In addition, the future of the West Indies also depends on the outcome of the ODI series between Afghanistan and Ireland. If Ireland win the series 4-1 or 5-0, and the West Indies beat India in both their matches, they will have a living chance of reaching the top-8