The International Cricket Council (ICC) today confirmed the match schedule for the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 has been revealed as hosts Sri Lanka prepare to welcome the future stars of world cricket to the island nation for the first time since 2006.
ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 Teams
16 teams are set to compete for the silverware across 41 matches from 13 January to 4 February, comprising the 11 best-placed Full Member teams at the last edition and five teams who earned their World Cup spot through regional qualification pathways – Namibia, Nepal, New Zealand, Scotland and the USA.
Through automatic qualification: Sri Lanka (hosts), Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Ireland, Pakistan, South Africa, West Indies and Zimbabwe.
Through regional qualification: Namibia (Africa Regional Qualifier), Nepal, New Zealand (EAP Regional Qualifier), Scotland (Europe Regional Qualifier) and USA (Americas Regional Qualifier).
Five historic venues located in Colombo will stage the 15th edition of the celebrated event; the P. Sara Oval, Colombo Cricket Club, Nondescripts Cricket Club, Singhalese Sports Club and the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium, the arena chosen to host both Semi Finals on 30 January and 1 February, and the Final on 4 February.
ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 Venues
- Nondescripts Cricket Club
- R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium
- P. Sara Oval. Colombo
- Colombo Cricket Club
- Singhalese Sports Club
The action starts on 13 January with three fixtures taking place on opening day. Hosts Sri Lanka takes on Zimbabwe at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium, while 2022 finalists England play Scotland at Colombo Cricket Club and New Zealand faces off against Nepal at the P. Sara Oval.
India, who triumphed in the 2022 edition in the West Indies, commenced the defence of their crown against 2020 winners Bangladesh a day later on 14 January at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.
ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 Format
The format for the upcoming edition has been tweaked from the previous edition.
The teams will be divided into four groups, each consisting of four teams, but the top three teams from each group will now progress to the Super Six stage. Group stage matches will take place from 13 to 21 January.
ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 Groups
In the group listings, holders India are joined by Bangladesh, Ireland and the USA in Group A. Group B consists of England, South Africa, West Indies and Scotland. Group C features Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Namibia while Group D is made up of Afghanistan, Pakistan, New Zealand and Nepal.
Additionally, the fourth-placed teams in each group will compete in one more match against another fourth-placed team before concluding their tournament.
Following the conclusion of the group stage, 12 teams will progress to the next phase, the Super Six. In this format, two groups of six teams will be created, with the top three teams from Groups A and D forming one group, and the top three teams from Groups B and C forming the other.
During the Super Six stage, each team will have two matches to play. They will face teams from the other group based on their positions in the initial group stage. For instance, the top team in Group A (A1) will play against the second and third teams in Group D (D2 and D3). A2 will play against D1 and D3, and so forth.
The top two teams from each Super Six group will qualify for the semi-finals, with the winners of this knock-out round sealing their place in the Final which will be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on, Sunday, 4 February.
The warm-up games are slated to take place from 6 to 12 January.
Speaking on the announcement of the schedule, ICC Head of Events, Chris Tetley remarked, “The ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup has a long-standing history of introducing global audiences to future stars of the sport.”
“Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson and Angelo Mathews are some of the names that made their entrance onto the world stage at this event, and we are certain to see this tradition continue as the drama unfolds across the 41 tournament fixtures,” he added.
“We are thrilled to see the competition return to Sri Lanka for the first time since 2006, in what promises to be a festival of cricket with no shortage of entertainment, and we are proud to offer fans the chance to witness the action for free once more,” he said.
Tournament Director, Samantha Dodanwela added, “Sri Lanka Cricket is delighted to be welcoming this prestigious event back to Sri Lanka after 18 years.”
“Sri Lanka is renowned for its passionate, cricket-loving fans, and we are looking forward to giving them the opportunity to watch some of the most promising young cricketers in the world over 23 days of competition,” he added.
“The five venues selected to host the event in January and February next year have been graced by many exceptionally talented cricketers over the years, and it will be fitting for these historic grounds to host the future stars of the game. With so much to look forward to, we have no doubt that the event will help showcase Sri Lanka as an ideal destination for cricket,” he said.
ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 Fixture
Ahead of the event, each competing team will play two warm-up matches between 7 and 11 January. These will take place across four of the five tournament venues.
The hosts will be hoping to go one better than their previous best finish when they were runners-up to India at the Final of the competition back in 2000.
The landmark event has been the springboard for some of the most recognisable stars of the global game. Throughout the history of the event, India are the most decorated with five U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup titles, Australia have won the event three times, Pakistan twice, while England, Bangladesh, South Africa and West Indies have each been crowned once.
