India and Australia to kickstart 2027 ICC ODI World Cup in Centurion
The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg will host the 2027 ODI World Cup final, mirroring the venue used in 2003 when India and Australia clashed. It will also be the hallowed venue for the mother of all rivalries, where India will face Pakistan on October 10th.
Discussions took place between Newlands and Johannesburg to host this iconic clash. However, due to Johannesburg's larger seating capacity, it was chosen over Cape Townโs Newlands. However, the tournament opener will be hosted in Cape Town on October 7th, where the two finalists from the last iteration, India and Australia, will square off.
Before the main rounds, the Namibia Cricket Ground in Windhoek will host the preliminary round between three teams to determine which team joins the other 11 sides in the quadrennial cricketing fiesta. Newlands will be hosting the first semi-final slated to be played on November 17th with the other game to be played in SuperSport Park in Centurion on November 18th.
The tournament will be played between 12 teams, out of which two teams are still to be decided. The teams will be divided into two groups of six sides each. Group A features Afghanistan, Australia, India, Pakistan, Zimbabwe and one of the qualifiers while Group B has Bangladesh, England, South Africa, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and the other qualifier clubbed together.
The two qualifiers will be selected from a ten-team tournament early next year. The winner will qualify directly to the main World Cup rounds, while the losing finalist and the two semi-finalists will play the Super Series in Windhoek.
Indiaโs first two games will be against Australia and Pakistan, scheduled for October 7th and October 10th respectively. This will be followed by their clash against Afghanistan on October 14th before the Men in Blue take on one of the qualifying teams on October 17th. They will be concluding their group stages with a clash against Zimbabwe on October 24th.
This will be followed by the Super Sevens before we move to the semis and the summit clash. The final will be played on 21st November in Joโburg, marking the return of the big clash to the same stadium after 23 long years.
You can find the full schedule here.
