After an incredible end to the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, the wait for the next edition among the fans has rapidly increased. The next edition of the tournament will be played in 2024. And now, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has revealed the format for the upcoming edition. It will be the West Indies and the USA that will jointly host the next edition of the tournament. It will be the first time that the USA will host a global cricket tournament.
According to the latest release by the ICC, it has been confirmed that unlike the 2022 edition, the next edition will feature more teams. Notably, the recently concluded edition in Australia had 16 teams playing in two rounds. Eight teams competed for the four spots in the “Super 12.” Then the top 12 teams faced each other to determine the four semifinalists in the tournament. However, the 2024 edition will have 20 teams in total.
T20 World Cup 2024: The Next edition will feature a total of 20 teams
There will be more associate nations with four more teams in the competition. Thus, as we saw weak or associate teams upset strong teams, we might see more such games in the upcoming edition. The West Indies and the USA will automatically qualify for the competition as hosts. Twenty teams will be divided into four groups of five teams each, which is a totally new concept for the stage.
The top two teams from all four groups will advance to the “Super 8” stage. In “Super 8” these eight teams will be divided into two groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group will then advance to the semi-finals. The West Indies and the United States have qualified to host the event. Then, the next 10 teams will be decided on the basis of their performance in 2022 and the ICC rankings till November 14. Top 8 teams from the “Super 12” in 2022, along with Bangladesh and Afghanistan, have qualified for the next edition.
| Teams | Qualification Scenario |
|---|---|
| West Indies and USA | Hosts |
| England, Pakistan, India, New Zealand, Australia Netherlands, South Africa, Sri Lanka | Top 8 teams in 2022 World Cup |
| Afghanistan and Pakistan | Qualified on the basis of Rankings as on November 14 |
T20 World Cup 2024: The remaining 8 teams will be decided through Regional Qualifiers
The remaining eight teams will be determined by regional qualifiers. Two spots will be from Africa, Asia, and Europe; the Americas and East-Asia Pacific regions will have one spot each.
Africa (two spots): With South Africa already qualified for the top 8 teams, Zimbabwe and Namibia are the top two contenders from the Africa region. Zimbabwe finished in 5th place in their group, while Namibia didn’t qualify for the next round.
Americas (one spot): Well, it didn’t go well for Canada in the T20 Qualifiers last time, but they are the firm favourites to make it from the Americas region. USA was the team that could have made their path difficult, but because they are the hosts, Canada is the one that might make it.
Asia (two spots): The toughest challenge will be in the Asian region. The likes of the UAE, Nepal, Oman, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bahrain, Qatar, and Malaysia are all capable of making it to the tournament. However, the UAE will be the firm favourite to make it.
East Asia-Pacific (one spot): The winner of Sub-Regional A Qualifier, Vanuatu, along with Papua New Guinea and the Philippines, will surely give their best. On the other hand, Japan, which won Sub-Regional Qualifier B, will also take part in the Qualifiers.
Europe (two spots): With the win over South Africa, the Netherlands has certainly given something to cheer about to the European region. The Netherlands has already qualified for the next tournament. But there will be a stiff challenge between Jersey, Germany, Scotland, and Ireland. But the likes of Italy, Austria, and Denmark will also pose a challenge in this region.