Teams are split into four groups of five. Group A includes India, Pakistan, USA, Netherlands and Namibia, with the India–Pakistan match scheduled for February 15 in Colombo. Group B comprises Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Ireland and Oman. Group C has England, West Indies, Scotland, Italy and Nepal, while Group D features South Africa, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Canada and the UAE. Each team plays four group matches, with the top two from each group advancing.
All Group B matches, featuring co-hosts Sri Lanka, will take place exclusively across Sri Lankan venues. All of Pakistan’s matches will also be played in Sri Lanka.
Scotland will take Bangladesh’s place in Group C alongside England, Italy, West Indies, and Nepal. Originally, Bangladesh were scheduled to play West Indies (February 7), Italy (February 9), and England (February 14) in Kolkata, followed by a match against Nepal on February 17 in Mumbai. But after Bangladeh’s exclusion, Scotland will face the same four teams on the same dates and venues.
The Super Eights begin on February 21, followed by the knockout stage. The semi-finals will be held in Kolkata or Colombo and Mumbai, before the final on March 8 in Ahmedabad or Colombo.
The world’s largest cricket venue, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, has been earmarked to host the final on 8 March, in a tournament that will span eight electrifying venues across India and Sri Lanka. The MA Chidambaram Stadium (Chennai), Arun Jaitley Stadium (New Delhi), Wankhede Stadium (Mumbai), Eden Gardens (Kolkata) R. Premadasa Stadium (Colombo), Sinhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground (Colombo) and Pallekele International Cricket Stadium (Kandy) round out the full list of host venues.
