ESPN is gearing up for the highly-anticipated ICC Champions Trophy, delivering comprehensive coverage of the bi-annual cricket event to fans around the world. The tournament – second only to the ICC Cricket World Cup – features the eight highest-ranked ODI teams competing this year from three grounds in England: Sophia Gardens in Cardiff, Edgbaston in Birmingham and The Kennington Oval in London.
Australia is looking for a three-peat heading into this year’s tournament, previously beating out New Zealand in 2009 and the West Indies led by Player of the Tournament Chris Gayle in 2006. They will compete against a strong field of national teams, including the local favorite England, and previous winners the West Indies, New Zealand, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Live Tournament Coverage
Exclusive live coverage of the entire tournament will be available on ESPN3 in the US as well as on ESPN Caribbean and broadband player ESPN Play in the Caribbean and Latin America. ESPN3 – ESPN’s live multi-screen sports network in the US – is available in more than 85 million households nationwide to fans who receive their Internet or video subscription from an affiliated service provider. It is accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold members. ESPN Play is available to subscribers of participating cable systems by logging onto their provider’s website or ESPNPlay.com.
The complete live match schedule:
| Date | Time (ET) | Match | Venue |
| Thu, Jun 6 | 5:15 a.m. | Group B: India vs. South Africa | Sophia Gardens, Cardiff |
| Fri, Jun 7 | 5:15 a.m. | Group B: Pakistan vs. West Indies | Kennington Oval, London |
| Sat, Jun 8 | 5:15 a.m. | Group A: England vs. Australia | Edgbaston, Birmingham |
| Sun, Jun 9 | 5:15 a.m. | Group A: New Zealand vs. Sri Lanka | Sophia Gardens, Cardiff |
| Mon, Jun 10 | 7:45 a.m. | Group B: Pakistan vs. South Africa | Edgbaston, Birmingham |
| Tue, Jun 11 | 5:15 a.m. | Group B: India vs. West Indies | Kennington Oval, London |
| Wed, Jun 12 | 5:15 a.m. | Group A: Australia vs. New Zealand | Edgbaston, Birmingham |
| Thu, Jun 13 | 7:45 a.m. | Group A: England vs. Sri Lanka | Kennington Oval, London |
| Fri, Jun 14 | 5:15 a.m. | Group B: South Africa vs. West Indies | Sophia Gardens, Cardiff |
| Sat, Jun 15 | 5:15 a.m. | Group B: India vs. Pakistan | Edgbaston, Birmingham |
| Sun, Jun 16 | 5:15 a.m. | Group A: England vs. New Zealand | Sophia Gardens, Cardiff |
| Mon, Jun 17 | 7:45 a.m. | Group A: Australia vs. Sri Lanka | Kennington Oval, London |
| Wed, Jun 19 | 5:15 a.m. | Semifinal 1: Group A winner vs. Group B runner-up | Kennington Oval, London |
| Thu, Jun 20 | 5:15 a.m. | Semifinal 2: Group A runner-up vs. Group B winner | Sophia Gardens, Cardiff |
| Sun, Jun 23 | 5:15 a.m. | Final: Semifinal 1 winner vs. Semifinal 2 winner | Edgbaston, Birmingham |
Daily In-Studio Programming
In addition to live match coverage, ESPN3, ESPN Caribbean and ESPN Play will present live daily studio programs that will highlight questions from fans and feature plays and players of the match with hashtag #ESPNCT13. Barry Wilkinson, one of the Caribbean’s leading cricket broadcasters, will serve as host of the studio shows. Ricardo Powell – a Jamaican native who represented the West Indies cricket team with a career total of 109 ODIs and two Test matches – will join Wilkinson during pre-match, innings break, post-match and highlight shows. The programs will be produced in their entirety from the ESPN Long Horn Production facilities in Austin, Tex. and integrated through Bristol, Conn. ESPN International will also deliver video-on-demand highlights from every match and published on digital platforms in the Caribbean and Pacific Rim regions.
Comprehensive Coverage from ESPNcricinfo Globally Across Digital Platforms
ESPNcricinfo is committed to delivering an independent voice for comprehensive coverage of all eight participating nations throughout the tournament. The world’s leading multiplatform cricket destination will have reporters at all games to provide immediate match reports, the most in-depth match analysis, its unmatched statistical database – Statsguru – and the acclaimed independent 24/7 news service with two decades years of leadership in cricket journalism.
The editorial team in England will include George Dobell, David Hopps, Andrew Fernando and Nagraj Gollapudi and will be backed up by other cricket specialists such as Siddharth Monga, Andrew McGlashan and Firdose Moonda as well as a host of feature writers and top voices from outside the mainstream in The Cordon.
ESPNcricinfo’s live ball-by-ball coverage of the Champions Trophy will also feature an innovative social scorecard – Match Companion – which brings fans closer to the action by enabling their voice to be heard as the matches unfold and serves as a second screen companion to viewing.