Whether it be Ellyse Perry’s boot out in the 2010 final, Alyssa Healy’s carnage against India which helped Australia lift the cup in 2020 or Harmanpreet Kaur’s blistering maiden hundred in the 2018 edition, the T20 World Cups have seen the best of cricketing action in 14 years of existence. The magic is all set to continue in the 2023 edition on South African shores. 

From fixtures to squads to venues to the latest news and much more, this is your one-stop shop for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 with everything you need to know about the tournament.

The Groups

Group 1

Australia, Bangladesh, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka

Group 2

England, India, Ireland, Pakistan, West Indies

The venues

Three venues across South Africa will be used for the T20 World Cup. The event kicks off on February 10 at Newlands, Cape Town, which will also host the semi-finals and the final. 

Boland Park, Paarl and St George’s Park, Gqeberha are the other venues for the event.

The Teams

Australia

The reigning ICC Women’s T20 World Cup champions and the current No. 1 side in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, will look to win the T20 World Cup for a record sixth time. 

Their squad features some of the biggest names in T20 history including skipper Meg Lanning, vice-captain Healy, all-rounder Perry and pacer Megan Schutt. Coming off a 2-0 home series win over Pakistan, Australia are in great shape for their title defence. 

Bangladesh

Having made it to the tournament by winning the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2022, the tigresses will look to take the challenge to some of their higher-ranked opponents. 

Bangladesh’s squad features a number of youngsters, some of whom impressed in the recently concluded ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup.

England

Sitting at No. 2 in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, England have been a consistent force in the format for some years.

Heather Knight’s team will bank on their experience and look to repeat their feats from the inaugural edition. In ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2009, England won the final against New Zealand by six wickets. 

India

Finalists of the 2020 edition, Harmanpreet Kaur-led India will hope to go one better in South Africa. 

The side has a good mix of spin and pace options including the likes of Deepti Sharma, Renuka Singh and Radha Yadav, while the batting is powered by several acclaimed batters like Kaur, Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma.

Ireland

Ireland made it to the tournament through the T20 World Cup qualifiers 2022. Laura Delany’s girls would like to make their mark in their fourth appearance in the tournament. 

Ireland would take encouragement from their recent results, which include a 2-1 win over Pakistan in Pakistan.

New Zealand 

New Zealand will want to rectify their recent record in the tournament, having exited in the first round of the 2018 and 2020 World Cups.

The White Ferns, who were runners-up in the first two editions of the tournament, will hope their recent form (10 wins from 14 encounters in 2022) comes good during the T20 World Cup. 

Pakistan

Bismah Maroof’s team have faced tough times in the last few months, with series losses to Australia and Ireland in recent times.

For stern tests against opponents like India and England in Group 2, they’ll place their bets on veterans like Maroof, Pakistan’s highest run-getter in T20Is, and Nida Dar, Pakistan’s highest wicket-taker in the format. 

South Africa

After the heartbreak of T20 World Cup 2020, where they missed out on the finals by a narrow margin, South Africa will look to make best use of home conditions.

The hosts are without regular skipper Dane van Niekerk, after she failed to clear the fitness requirements put in place by Cricket South Africa.

Sune Luus leads the side which has experience in the likes of Marizanne Kapp, Laura Wolvaardt and Shabnim Ismail in this campaign.

Sri Lanka

Placed at number nine in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, the Chamari Athapaththu-led side will look to break their World Cup jinx of first-round exits and make it to the next stage in South Africa.

Sri Lanka have a number of spin options to exploit the slow surfaces in South Africa. Slow left-arm orthodox spinners Inoka Ranaweera and Sugandika Kumari lead the attack, with support from Oshadi Ranasinghe and Kavisha Dilhari.

West Indies

West Indies will hope to repeat the feats of the 2016 tournament, where they bested Australia to lift the cup. 

Hayley Matthews’ team has a blend of youth and experience. The old hands include former skipper Stafanie Taylor, Shemaine Campbelle and Afy Fletcher. Performers from the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, namely Trishan Holder, Zaida James and Djenaba Joseph, also make it to the squad.

Tournament Format

This year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup takes place in two stages.

The 10 teams are divided into two groups of five sides each. South Africa qualified on the basis of being hosts, while seven other sides also gained automatic qualification. Bangladesh and Ireland made it through the qualifiers.

The first round sees the sides participating in round-robin contests in their respective groups. The top two teams from each group reach the knockout stage.

The knock-out stage consists of two semi-finals and the Final at Newlands, Cape Town on February 26.

Key dates

The World Cup commences with a Group 1 encounter between South Africa and Sri Lanka on February 10.

The group round games finish on February 21 with a game between South Africa and Bangladesh.

Semi-finals take place on February 23 and 24 at Newlands, Cape Town.

The finals are played on February 26 at Newlands, Cape Town.

The venues

Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town

Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town is a South African cricket ground. It is the home of the Cape Cobras, who play in the Sunfoil Series, Momentum 1 Day Cup and RamSlam Pro20 competitions.

It is also a venue for Test matches, ODIs and T20Is. Newlands is regarded as one of the most beautiful cricket grounds in the world, being overlooked by Table Mountain and Devil’s Peak. It is close to Newlands Stadium, which is a rugby union and football venue. The cricket ground opened in 1888. In March 2019, it was announced that the owners of Newlands Cricket Ground, the Western Province Cricket Association, went into partnership with Sanlam, to form a new office-block development as part of the cricket ground.

Boland Park, Paarl

Boland Park is a multi-purpose stadium in Paarl, South Africa. It is used mostly for cricket matches and has hosted three matches during the 2003 Cricket World Cup. Boland cricket team and the Cape Cobras both stage home matches at the ground. The stadium has a capacity of 10,000 people.

The first ever ODI match was between India and Zimbabwe in 1997 during the tri-series which ended in a tie. On 11 January 2012, hosts South Africa beat Sri Lanka by a margin of 258 runs in an ODI. Sri Lanka were dismissed for a low total of 43, which is the lowest men’s ODI total in their history.

St George’s Park, Gqeberha

St George’s Park Cricket Ground is a cricket ground in St George’s Park, South Africa. It is the home of the Port Elizabeth Cricket Club, one of the oldest cricket clubs in South Africa, and the Eastern Province Club. The ground is notable for its brass band that plays during major matches, adding a unique flavour to its atmosphere.

The ground hosted its first Test match in March 1889 when England defeated South Africa by 8 wickets. This was South Africa’s first Test match. As of 2005, there have been 21 Test matches played at the ground of which South Africa has won 8 and their opponents 9 with 4 draws.

The first One Day International played at the ground was in December 1992 when South Africa beat India by 6 wickets. 

Whether it be Ellyse Perry’s boot out in the 2010 final, Alyssa Healy’s carnage against India which helped Australia lift the cup in 2020 or Harmanpreet Kaur’s blistering maiden hundred in the 2018 edition, the T20 World Cups have seen the best of cricketing action in 14 years of existence. The magic is all set to continue in the 2023 edition on South African shores. 

From fixtures to squads to venues to the latest news and much more, this is your one-stop shop for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 with everything you need to know about the tournament.

The Groups

Group 1

Australia, Bangladesh, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka

Group 2

England, India, Ireland, Pakistan, West Indies

The venues

Three venues across South Africa will be used for the T20 World Cup. The event kicks off on February 10 at Newlands, Cape Town, which will also host the semi-finals and the final. 

Boland Park, Paarl and St George’s Park, Gqeberha are the other venues for the event.

The Teams

Australia

The reigning ICC Women’s T20 World Cup champions and the current No. 1 side in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, will look to win the T20 World Cup for a record sixth time. 

Their squad features some of the biggest names in T20 history including skipper Meg Lanning, vice-captain Healy, all-rounder Perry and pacer Megan Schutt. Coming off a 2-0 home series win over Pakistan, Australia are in great shape for their title defence. 

Bangladesh

Having made it to the tournament by winning the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2022, the tigresses will look to take the challenge to some of their higher-ranked opponents. 

Bangladesh’s squad features a number of youngsters, some of whom impressed in the recently concluded ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup.

England

Sitting at No. 2 in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, England have been a consistent force in the format for some years.

Heather Knight’s team will bank on their experience and look to repeat their feats from the inaugural edition. In ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2009, England won the final against New Zealand by six wickets. 

India

Finalists of the 2020 edition, Harmanpreet Kaur-led India will hope to go one better in South Africa. 

The side has a good mix of spin and pace options including the likes of Deepti Sharma, Renuka Singh and Radha Yadav, while the batting is powered by several acclaimed batters like Kaur, Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma.

Ireland

Ireland made it to the tournament through the T20 World Cup qualifiers 2022. Laura Delany’s girls would like to make their mark in their fourth appearance in the tournament. 

Ireland would take encouragement from their recent results, which include a 2-1 win over Pakistan in Pakistan.

New Zealand 

New Zealand will want to rectify their recent record in the tournament, having exited in the first round of the 2018 and 2020 World Cups.

The White Ferns, who were runners-up in the first two editions of the tournament, will hope their recent form (10 wins from 14 encounters in 2022) comes good during the T20 World Cup. 

Pakistan

Bismah Maroof’s team have faced tough times in the last few months, with series losses to Australia and Ireland in recent times.

For stern tests against opponents like India and England in Group 2, they’ll place their bets on veterans like Maroof, Pakistan’s highest run-getter in T20Is, and Nida Dar, Pakistan’s highest wicket-taker in the format. 

South Africa

After the heartbreak of T20 World Cup 2020, where they missed out on the finals by a narrow margin, South Africa will look to make best use of home conditions.

The hosts are without regular skipper Dane van Niekerk, after she failed to clear the fitness requirements put in place by Cricket South Africa.

Sune Luus leads the side which has experience in the likes of Marizanne Kapp, Laura Wolvaardt and Shabnim Ismail in this campaign.

Sri Lanka

Placed at number nine in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, the Chamari Athapaththu-led side will look to break their World Cup jinx of first-round exits and make it to the next stage in South Africa.

Sri Lanka have a number of spin options to exploit the slow surfaces in South Africa. Slow left-arm orthodox spinners Inoka Ranaweera and Sugandika Kumari lead the attack, with support from Oshadi Ranasinghe and Kavisha Dilhari.

West Indies

West Indies will hope to repeat the feats of the 2016 tournament, where they bested Australia to lift the cup. 

Hayley Matthews’ team has a blend of youth and experience. The old hands include former skipper Stafanie Taylor, Shemaine Campbelle and Afy Fletcher. Performers from the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, namely Trishan Holder, Zaida James and Djenaba Joseph, also make it to the squad.

Tournament Format

This year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup takes place in two stages.

The 10 teams are divided into two groups of five sides each. South Africa qualified on the basis of being hosts, while seven other sides also gained automatic qualification. Bangladesh and Ireland made it through the qualifiers.

The first round sees the sides participating in round-robin contests in their respective groups. The top two teams from each group reach the knockout stage.

The knock-out stage consists of two semi-finals and the Final at Newlands, Cape Town on February 26.

Key dates

The World Cup commences with a Group 1 encounter between South Africa and Sri Lanka on February 10.

The group round games finish on February 21 with a game between South Africa and Bangladesh.

Semi-finals take place on February 23 and 24 at Newlands, Cape Town.

The finals are played on February 26 at Newlands, Cape Town.

The venues

Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town

Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town is a South African cricket ground. It is the home of the Cape Cobras, who play in the Sunfoil Series, Momentum 1 Day Cup and RamSlam Pro20 competitions.

It is also a venue for Test matches, ODIs and T20Is. Newlands is regarded as one of the most beautiful cricket grounds in the world, being overlooked by Table Mountain and Devil’s Peak. It is close to Newlands Stadium, which is a rugby union and football venue. The cricket ground opened in 1888. In March 2019, it was announced that the owners of Newlands Cricket Ground, the Western Province Cricket Association, went into partnership with Sanlam, to form a new office-block development as part of the cricket ground.

Boland Park, Paarl

Boland Park is a multi-purpose stadium in Paarl, South Africa. It is used mostly for cricket matches and has hosted three matches during the 2003 Cricket World Cup. Boland cricket team and the Cape Cobras both stage home matches at the ground. The stadium has a capacity of 10,000 people.

The first ever ODI match was between India and Zimbabwe in 1997 during the tri-series which ended in a tie. On 11 January 2012, hosts South Africa beat Sri Lanka by a margin of 258 runs in an ODI. Sri Lanka were dismissed for a low total of 43, which is the lowest men’s ODI total in their history.

St George’s Park, Gqeberha

St George’s Park Cricket Ground is a cricket ground in St George’s Park, South Africa. It is the home of the Port Elizabeth Cricket Club, one of the oldest cricket clubs in South Africa, and the Eastern Province Club. The ground is notable for its brass band that plays during major matches, adding a unique flavour to its atmosphere.

The ground hosted its first Test match in March 1889 when England defeated South Africa by 8 wickets. This was South Africa’s first Test match. As of 2005, there have been 21 Test matches played at the ground of which South Africa has won 8 and their opponents 9 with 4 draws.

The first One Day International played at the ground was in December 1992 when South Africa beat India by 6 wickets. 

Despite having won the three-match series, South Africa’s 59-run defeat in the third and final ODI against England at the Diamond Oval, Kimberley on Wednesday has them delicately placed in the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League, wherein they currently occupy the ninth position.

South Africa were further dented due to their slow over-rate in the game, which led to them losing a point, thereby widening the gulf between them and eighth-placed Sri Lanka. They have also been fined 20 per cent of their match fee.

South Africa were ruled to be one over short of the target after time allowances were taken into consideration and Jeff Crowe of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees imposed the sanction.

It has cost them a point in the Super League points table at a time they badly needed any point coming their way. It was their first penalty-over offence in the ongoing cycle, wherein Sri Lanka have already lost three points, followed by West Indies and Ireland (two each) and India (one).

The top eight teams in the Super League cycle will be ensured a direct qualification to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 later this year, with India qualifying automatically on account of being the hosts.

South Africa’s chances had taken a significant dent following their withdrawal from the three-match home series against Australia, before they redeemed themselves with back-to-back wins against England.

A team gets 10 points for a win, five for a tie/no result/abandoned match, and zero for a defeat. South Africa currently have 78 points – 10 behind Sri Lanka – who will play three ODIs on their New Zealand tour in March.

The Proteas have two games remaining in the cycle – against the Netherlands – in March-April, setting it up for a tight contest for the last spot in the top-eight finish. 

The bottom five teams in the standings will join five Associate teams in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe in June, from which the top two teams will make it through to the tournament major.