The ICC Men's T20 World Cup will now be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman, the International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed on Tuesday. The tournament will start from October 17 and the final match will be played on November 14. This tournament was to be organized in India this year, but due to the COVID-19 epidemic, this decision was taken. However, BCCI will host this event and all matches of the tournament will be held at Dubai International Stadium, Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah Stadium and Oman Cricket Ground. Earlier, the UAE hosted the 2020 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and will also host the remainder of IPL 2021.
In an official statement, the ICC said, "The ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 will be staged in the UAE and Oman due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation in India. Our priority is to deliver the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 safely, in full and in its current window. Whilst we are incredibly disappointed not to be hosting the event in India, the decision gives us the certainty we need to stage the event in a country that is a proven international host of multi-team events in a bio-secure environment."
Meanwhile, the first round of the T20 World Cup will be played between 8 teams in two groups. There will be 12 matches in this. Out of these 4 teams (Top-2 teams of both the groups) will qualify for Super-12. These 8 teams are Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland, Namibia, Oman and Papua New Guinea. At the same time, the matches of both these groups can be held in UAE and Oman.
