The tournament will see the participation from 16 teams — 11 full members and five qualifiers — who would compete for the silverware across 41 matches. As per details, the five teams who earned their World Cup spot through regional qualification pathways are Namibia, Nepal, New Zealand, Scotland and the USA.

The matches will take place at five historic venues located in Colombo. The venues are — P. Sara Oval, Colombo Cricket Club, Nondescripts Cricket Club, Singhalese Sports Club, and the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.

The iconic R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium has been chosen to host both Semi Finals on 30 January and 1 February, and the Final on 4 February.

ALSO READ: ICC World Cup 2023: India’s jersey to have a tri-color surprise, netizens call it a masterstroke

The sporting event begins on 13 January with three fixtures taking place on opening day. Hosting nation Sri Lanka will take on Zimbabwe at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium while 2022 finalists England play Scotland at Colombo Cricket Club and New Zealand face off against Nepal at the P. Sara Oval.

India will begin its journey by playing against 2020 winners Bangladesh a day later on 14 January at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.

Starting 24 January, teams progressing from the group stages will enter a new Super Six stage where two groups of six teams will clash to determine the semi-finalists and the subsequent finalists.

In Group A, India is joined by Bangladesh, Ireland, and the USA, while Group B consists of England, South Africa, the West Indies, and Scotland. Group C features Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, and Namibia while Group D is made up of Afghanistan, Pakistan, New Zealand, and Nepal.

Speaking on the announcement of the schedule, ICC Head of Events, Chris Tetley remarked, as HT quoted, “The ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup has a long-standing history of introducing global audiences to future stars of the sport.”

He added, “Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, and Angelo Mathews are some of the names that made their entrance onto the world stage at this event, and we are certain to see this tradition continue as the drama unfolds across the 41 tournament fixtures.”

“We are thrilled to see the competition return to Sri Lanka for the first time since 2006, in what promises to be a festival of cricket with no shortage of entertainment, and we are proud to offer fans the chance to witness the action for free once more,” he added.

Each competing team will play two warm-up matches between 7 and 11 January, ahead of the event. These will take place across four of the five tournament venues.

Updated: 22 Sep 2023, 05:42 PM IST