ICC Announce Venues for Women's World T20 2018

The International Cricket Council (ICC), on Monday (January 22), announced the venues for the forthcoming ICC Women’s World Twenty20, scheduled to be held this year in the Caribbean.

The three venues which will be holding the games are Antigua and Barbuda, Guyana.

Cricket West Indies finalised the venues through a bidding process initiated last year, and have been ratified by the ICC. The preliminary round matches will be held at the Guyana National Stadium and Darren Sammy Stadium in Saint Lucia, while the two semifinals and the title-decider will get played at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua and Barbuda.

Hosts West Indies will be the defending champions in the tournament which will run from November 2 to 24. West Indies had defeated Australia by eight wickets in Kolkata in 2016 to seal the title.

Current skipper Stafanie Taylor, who is likely to lead the team again, said her team is keen on defending the title and is looking forward to welcoming the other teams in the Caribbeans.

“As Captain of the defending champions, we are keen on defending our title and since we know we will be at home, we want to use this as an opportunity to welcome the world to the region for top-class competitive Women’s cricket.”

Apart from the hosts, the other teams who will be fighting it out in the tournament are Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and reigning ODI champions England, who have all qualified directly for the tournament. The remaining two spots in the ten-team event will be taken up by the finalists of the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier, scheduled to be played in the Netherlands from 3-14 July.

“We are excited to be hosting the very first stand-alone ICC Women’s World T20. This will add to the established passion for women’s cricket throughout our Region. This is significant not just for the advancement of the sport of cricket but also for the potential for sharing with the world the many irresistible offerings of the beautiful countries of the West Indies,” said Tournament Director Jennifer Nero.

“We welcome cricket fans around the world to the home of the reigning ICC Women’s WT20 Champions to celebrate with us as we host the world’s best women cricketers in this highly competitive tournament infused with all the truly festive and uniquely Caribbean flavours,”  Nero added.

Meanwhile, the fixtures and group formation of the team are yet to get announced by the governing body of the game. The upcoming tournament will also be the first instance of the Women’s World T20 being played as a standalone event after the previous six editions were organised alongside the men’s World T20.

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