India captain Rohit Sharma has reacted to the ICC unveiling the schedule of the upcoming ICC World Cup 2023 on Tuesday, June 27, 2023. The tournament starts on October 5 with England taking on New Zealand in Ahmedabad in the opening match.
On the other hand, India’s World Cup 2023 campaign will begin on October 8th against Australia in Chennai. India play all their nine league matches at different venues including, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi, Lucknow, and Bengaluru.
The big-ticket India versus Pakistan match will be played on October 15 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
India skipper Rohit Sharma is expecting the upcoming ODI World Cup in the country to be a highly-competitive affair since "the game has become faster".
"This World Cup is going to be very competitive as the game has become faster and teams are playing more positively than ever before. All this augurs well for fans worldwide, promising them many thrilling moments. We look forward to preparing well and being at our best this October-November,” Rohit said in an ICC release.
India's other big-ticket fixtures include matches against New Zealand and England on October 22 and 29 in Dharamsala and Lucknow respectively.
The tournament retains the round-robin format of last time with all teams playing against each other for a total of 45 league matches. There are six-day matches in the tournament, which will start at 10:30 am IST.
All other matches, including the knockouts, will be day-night fixtures starting at 2 pm IST.
The top four teams will qualify for the semifinals to be played in Mumbai on November 15 and in Kolkata on November 16. The semifinals and the final will have reserve days.
If India qualifies for the semifinals, they will play their last-four stage game in Mumbai, unless they clash with Pakistan in the semi-final, then the game will take place in Kolkata.
India's World Cup 2023 schedule:
India vs Australia, Oct 8, Chennai
India vs Afghanistan, Oct 11, Delhi
India vs Pakistan, Oct 15, Ahmedabad
India vs Bangladesh, Oct 19, Pune
India vs New Zealand, Oct 22, Dharamsala
India vs England, Oct 29, Lucknow
India vs Qualifier 2, Nov 2, Mumbai
India vs South Africa, Nov 5, Kolkata
India vs Qualifier 1, Nov 11, Bengaluru.
