ICC announces schedule for 2022 Women’s ODI World Cup

• Eight of the best teams in women’s cricket will battle from 4 March to 3 April 2022 to decide the new champion

ESPNCRICINFO: Eight of the best teams in women’s cricket will battle over 31 matches in 31 days to decide the new champion with the ICC announcing the schedule for the 2022 ODI World Cup.

New Zealand, the hosts, will open the tournament against one of the qualifying sides on 4 March in Tauranga. The current title holders, England, will kick off their campaign with a high-profile meeting with Australia on 5 March in Hamilton. And 2017 runners-up India will hope to go one better as they too start off by facing the qualifying side on 6 March.

These qualifying sides - three in number - will come from a tournament to take place in Sri Lanka between 26 June and 10 July 2021. As to the format of the World Cup itself, all eight teams will play against each other once and the top four will go through to the knockouts.

Wellington will host the first semi-final on 30 March and Christchurch will host the second semi-final and the final on 31 March and 3 April. The Hagley Oval has only recently been upgraded with floodlights and New Zealand veteran Amy Sattherthwaite is eager to see how her home ground will look come game time.

“To play in a World Cup at our own stomping ground here in Christchurch, under lights, would be a real career highlight,” she said. “It was hard to watch the T20 Women’s Cricket World Cup from the sidelines back in March (after giving birth in January) so seeing the match schedule all locked in for the ODI World Cup here in 2022 gives both myself and the rest of the team a target to strive for as we prepare over the next 16 months.”

In addition to being called champions, the team that wins it all will walk away with a prize money of NZD 5.5 million ($ 3.9 million approx.). India have come close to clinching those honours and Mithali Raj is keen to go again. “India has been doing very well at ICC tournaments in the past three or four years, whether you talk about the (ODI) World Cup or the recently concluded T20 World Cup,” she said. “And if we manage to win the tournament in 2022, it will be a massive inspiration for the next generation of girls, as the 50-over format, is considered the pinnacle for any cricketer.”

The World Cup had to be postponed from its original date in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be one of two bumper women’s cricket events in 2022 alongside the Commonwealth Games in England.