The International Cricket Council (ICC) has reiterated its desire to set a world-record attendance for a women’s sporting event after the fixture list for next year’s Twenty20 World Cup in Australia was confirmed today (Tuesday).
For the first time, the women’s and men’s T20 World Cups will be held as standalone events in the same year and in the same country.
The women’s tournament is scheduled for February 21 to March 8, 2020. The final will be held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground – the biggest cricket venue in the world – on International Women’s Day and the ICC said it presents a “groundbreaking opportunity” to set a new world record for attendance in women’s sport.
The current world-record attendance for a women’s sporting event is 90,185, set at the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup final in California.
The women’s tournament will get underway when hosts and defending champions Australia take on India at Sydney Showground Stadium on February 21. The Sydney Cricket Ground has also been pencilled in to stage a semi-final double-header on March 5.
The men’s event will take place later in the year, from October 18 to November 15, 2020. The SCG will host the opening match of the Super 12 stage of the tournament on October 24 when Australia takes on Pakistan.
The first men’s semi-final will be held at the SCG on November 11, with the second semi-final to be staged the following night at the Adelaide Oval. The men’s final will be held at the MCG (pictured) on November 15.
Both tournaments will be staged across Australia, with eight host cities and 13 venues awarded hosting rights.
ICC chief executive David Richardson said: “Whenever we host an event in Australia we know we can guarantee the one billion cricket fans around the world a great show. The world’s best players. Outstanding venues. Noisy, passionate, knowledgeable fans. Exciting cricket. This is the perfect combination for a T20 World Cup and in 2020 we go one step further with two T20 World Cups in one year.
“To hold two T20 World Cup finals at the world’s largest cricket stadium in front of 92,000 people with hundreds of millions more watching around the world is a particularly exciting prospect as we look to grow the fans around the world and make 2020 the year of cricket.”
The ICC has also confirmed that all Women’s T20 World Cup matches, including the final, will have tickets from Aus$20 (£10.87/€12.53/$14.32). All kids’ tickets for the event, including the final, are Aus$5.
Tickets for the women’s warm-up matches will be Aus$10 each, with all kids’ tickets free. Over half of all tickets for the Women’s T20 World Cup are Aus$20.
Fans can sign up for early access to tickets at t20worldcup.com. Those who register before February 13 will receive priority access to women’s tickets before they go on sale to the public on February 21.
Ticket information for the men’s event will be announced later in the year.
Image: Richard Munckton
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