Cricket World Cup Super League to start on July 30

By Masood Sattar Khan
(Pakistan News & Features Services) 

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced that top seven teams from the Super League and hosts India will qualify directly for the 2023 World Cup. 

The forthcoming ODI series between England and Ireland, beginning on July 30, will officially kick-start the Cricket World Cup Super League, the game’s governing body confirmed on July 27. 

The World Cup Super League, announced first in June 2018, was introduced alongside the Test Championship to provide context to ODI cricket by acting as a qualification pathway to determine participants for the 2023 Men's World Cup in India. 

A total of 13 teams, including Netherlands who won the ICC World Cricket League 2015-17, will feature in the Super League with the top seven teams, besides hosts India, securing direct qualification to the 2023 World Cup.

Over the course of the league, each team will play four series at home and four away, with teams awarded 10 points for a win and five for no result or tie. All Super League assignments will be three-match series although teams will be free to schedule additional games, results of which will not be considered for league points. 

The five bottom sides from the league will fight for the final two spots of the 10-team showpiece event at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, where they will  be joined by Associate countries that have progressed from the Cricket World Cup League 2 as well as the two Cricket World Cup Challenge Leagues via the Qualifier Playoff. 

The World Cup Super League was originally scheduled to begin in May 2020 and run until March 2022 before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic pushed back the start date to July 30. 

The Cricket World Cup League 2 series due to be hosted in Namibia in September and also involving Papua New Guinea and the United States has been postponed and will be rescheduled.