India to Begin World Cup From June 5, Play Pakistan on June 16

In keeping with the Lodha Committee’s recommendations, which says that a mandatory 15-day gap is required between the Indian Premier League (IPL) final and any international match, India will open their 2019 ICC World Cup campaign against South Africa on June 5 instead of June 2.

At the International Cricket Council (ICC) Chief Executives Meeting in Kolkata on Tuesday, it was decided that Virat Kohli’s team will take on the Proteas two days later than what was originally planned as the IPL now has a separate window and was included in the ICC’s Future Tours Programme as a global event last year. The decision comes after a request was made by the BCCI and accepted by the chief executives’ committee. It is yet to be ratified by the ICC Board, which meets today.

The 2019 World Cup will be held in England and Wales from May 30 to July 14. The eleven venues that will host the tournament are Lord's, the Oval, Edgbaston, Trent Bridge, Headingley, Old Trafford, Taunton, Bristol, Chester-le-Street, Southampton and Cardiff. The tournament comprises 48 matches to be played across 46 days. Given the frequency of rain in the early English summer, the ICC has catered for reserve days for the knockout games. The tournament reverts to the 1992 format with all 10 teams playing each other in a league with the top four going on to the semifinals.

Meanwhile, it was also decided that India will play a maximum of 309 days of international cricket in this cycle across formats which is a reduction of 92 days from the previous cycle.

The number of home tests will be increased from 15 to 19.

It was also decided that India won't take part in any Day/Night Test match, which was expected against the West Indies later this year. Given that the ICC Test Championships will only consist of day matches played with the red ball, the BCCI saw no purpose in playing a day/night Test with a pink ball.

Some of the other major decisions to be taken by the ICC board include the extension of Shashank Manohar as its chairman for another term and the replacing the Champions Trophy 2021 with a World T20 tournament featuring 16 teams. This is as a result of the ICC coming in for criticism for its decision to reduce the number of teams at the World Cup tournament to 10, particularly given the exclusion of new members such as Ireland.

Key matches

England v South Africa (opening match) - May 30, The Oval; India v Pakistan - June 16, Old Trafford; England v Australia - June 19, Lord's; Australia v New Zealand - June 29, Lord's; Semi-final 1 - July 9, Old Trafford; Semi-final 2 - July 11, Edgbaston; Final - July 14, Lord's

​[With inputs from IANS]