USA Faces Nepal In Opener Of ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015

USA team with Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard at the conclusion of ICC Americas Division 1 Championship. Photo courtesy of Ali Ibrahim Photography and www.adisportsusa.com

The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the schedule of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015, which will be staged across eight Ireland and Scotland venues from 9 to 26 July.

The top six sides from the 18-day tournament during which 51 matches will be played, will join the 10 Full Members for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, which will be held from 11 March to 3 April 2016.

In the July tournament, Ireland will also aim to complete a hat-trick of titles after it won the March 2012 and November 2013 qualifiers, both times defeating Afghanistan in the final.

Afghanistan had taken the top honors in the February 2010 tournament, while Ireland and Netherlands shared the trophy in August 2009 in Belfast after the final was washed-out.

Both Ireland and Afghanistan are in different groups. Ireland is joined in Group A by Nepal, Hong Kong, Jersey Papua New Guinea (PNG), Namibia and United States of America (USA), while Pool B includes Canada, Netherlands, Scotland, Kenya, Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) apart from Afghanistan.

The inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007 was competed by Kenya and Scotland apart from the 10 Full Members, while Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland (replacing Zimbabwe) featured in the 2009 tournament in England. Ireland and Afghanistan filled in the two spots for the 2010 and 2012 events, before the ICC Board decided to increase the number of sides below the Test nations to six for the ICC World Twenty20 2014. The six sides that joined the 10 Full Members for the Bangladesh tournament were Afghanistan, Hong Kong, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands and the UAE.

According to the format of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015, the sides that top the two groups will automatically qualify for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, while the sides that finish second and third in each of the two groups will play cross-over matches with the two winners joining the table-toppers for the India tournament.

The losing sides of the two play-off matches will then play the fourth-placed sides from each of the two groups in cross-over matches with the winners completing the 16-team line-up for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016.

The fifth-sixth and third-fourth position play-offs as well as the final will be played on the last three days of the tournament based on which these teams’ seeding/groupings for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016 will be confirmed.

Malahide in Dublin and The Grange in Edinburgh will be the two broadcast venues. However, broadcast details of the ICC Word Twenty20 2015 will be announced closer to the start of the tournament.

Certain venue/matches will be ticketed and these details will be announced in due course.

The two groups are:

The schedule is:
Warm-up matches
Mon, 6 July (1000-1310) – Nepal v Oman, Stormont, Belfast; PNG v Kenya, Bready, Co. Tyrone; Scotland v Namibia, The Grange, Edinburgh; Netherlands v Hong Kong, Myreside, Edinburgh
Mon, 6 July (1415-1725) – Ireland v UAE, Stormont, Belfast; USA v local side, Bready, Co. Tyrone; Canada v local side, The Grange, Edinburgh; Afghanistan v Jersey, Myreside, Edinburgh
Tue, 7 July (1000-1310) – Nepal v UAE, Stormont, Belfast; local team v PNG, Bready, Co. Tyrone; Scotland v Jersey, Goldenacre, Edinburgh; local team v Netherlands, New Williamfield, Stirling
Tue, 7 July (1415-1725) – Ireland v Oman, Stormont, Belfast; Kenya v USA, Bready, Co. Tyrone; Canada v Namibia, Goldenacre, Edinburgh; Afghanistan v Hong Kong, New Williamfield, Stirling

Tournament matches
Thurs, 9 July – Scotland v UAE, The Grange, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Netherlands v Afghanistan, The Grange, Edinburgh (1415-1725)

Fri, 10 July – Ireland v Namibia, Stormont, Belfast (1000-1310); Canada v Kenya, Myreside, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Nepal v USA, Stormont, Belfast (1415-1725); UAE v Afghanistan, The Grange, Edinburgh 1415-1725

Sat, 11 July – Hong Kong v Jersey, Bready, Co. Tyrone (1000-1310); Scotland v Netherlands, The Grange, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Kenya v Oman, Myreside, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Nepal v Namibia, Stormont, Belfast (1415-1725)

Sun, 12 July – Ireland v USA, Stormont, Belfast (1000-1310); PNG v Jersey, Bready, Co. Tyrone (1000-1310); UAE v Netherlands, The Grange, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Canada v Oman, New Williamfield, Stirling (1000-1310); Scotland v Afghanistan, The Grange, Edinburgh (1415-1725)

Mon, 13 July – Namibia v USA, Stormont, Belfast (1000-1310); Hong Kong v PNG, Bready, Co. Tyrone (1000-1310); Ireland v Nepal, Stormont, Belfast (1415-1725); Afghanistan v Kenya, New Williamfield, Stirling (1415-1725)

Tue, 14 July – Netherlands v Oman, Myreside, Edinburgh (1000-1310); UAE v Canada, New Williamfield, Stirling (1000-1310); Scotland v Kenya, The Grange, Edinburgh (1415-1725)

Wed, 15 July – Ireland v PNG, Stormont, Belfast (1000-1310); USA v Jersey, Bready, Co. Tyrone (1000-1310); Afghanistan v Oman, Goldenacre, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Nepal v Hong Kong, Stormont, Belfast (1415-1725); UAE v Kenya, Goldenacre, Edinburgh (1415-1725)

Thurs, 16 July – Scotland v Canada, Goldenacre, Edinburgh (1000-1310)

Fri, 17 July – Nepal v PNG, Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); Namibia v Jersey, Clontarf (1000-1310); Netherlands v Canada, Goldenacre, Edinburgh (1000-1310); UAE v Oman, New Williamfield, Stirling (1000-1310); Ireland v Hong Kong, Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725)

Sat, 18 July – Nepal v Jersey, Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); Scotland v Oman, Goldenacre, Edinburgh (1000-1310); Afghanistan v Canada, New Williamfield, Stirling (1000-1310); PNG v Namibia, Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725); Hong Kong v USA, Clontarf, Dublin (1415-1725); Netherlands v Kenya, Myreside, Edinburgh (1415-1725)

Sun, 19 July – Ireland v Jersey, Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); PNG v USA, Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725); Hong Kong v Namibia, Clontarf, Dublin (1415-1725)

Tue, 21 July – Qualifying Play-Off 1 (A2 v B3), Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); Qualifying Play-Off 2 (A3 v B2), Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725)

Thurs, 23 July – Qualifying Play-Off 3 (A4 v loser Qualifying Play-Off 1, Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); Qualifying Play-Off 4 (B4 v loser Qualifying Play-Off 2, Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725)

Sat, 25 July – Semi-final (B1 v Winner Qualifying Play-off 1), Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); fifth/sixth position play-off (winner play-off 3 v winner play-off 4), Clontarf, Dublin (1000-1310); Semi-final (A1 v Winner Qualifying Play-off 2), Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725)

Sun, 26 July – Third place play-off, Malahide, Dublin (1000-1310); Final, Malahide, Dublin (1415-1725)