The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the full match schedule for the ICC Women’s World Cup in England and Wales on Wednesday, March 8.
The tournament will get underway on Saturday, 24 June as 28 matches will be held over 21 days, including four weekends, meaning more opportunities for fans to attend. A round-robin between the world’s eight best teams will conclude with the semi-finals at Bristol and Derby before the final at Lord’s on 23 July.
David Richardson, the ICC Chief Executive, said: “I can’t think of a better moment than International Women’s Day to unveil the schedule of one of the leading global events in women’s sport.
“We are anticipating an exciting tournament and I know the players are looking forward to competing here in front of unprecedented levels of support. We’ve already sold 9000 tickets for the final at Lord’s which bodes well for the rest of the event going on sale today. I know we can always count on the British sport loving public to support big events.
“After the extremely successful qualifying tournament in Sri Lanka last month, we can already see that there will be some fiercely contested fixtures as the standard and competitiveness of women’s cricket continues to rise.”
Steve Elworthy, the Managing Director of the ICC Women’s World Cup, said: “We are extremely excited about the ICC Women’s World Cup being staged at four outstanding county grounds which I am sure will provide the best possible showcase for the top players in the women’s game.
Host England faces India on the opening day in a highly anticipated fixture in Derby while powerhouse New Zealand faces qualifier Sri Lanka in Bristol on the same day – 24 June. India will feature in four games in Derby, including the much anticipated clash with arch rival Pakistan on Sunday, 2 July. India will also take on the West Indies in Taunton, Australia in Bristol and South Africa in Leicester.
England will take on the six-time and reigning champion Australia in Bristol on Sunday, 9 July and the highly fancied New Zealand in Derby on 12 July. The big-hitting West Indies team, runner-up in the 2013 ICC Women’s World Cup, will play three matches in Taunton including the repeat of the Mumbai final against Australia in the opening match at the County Ground on 26 June.
Leicester will be the home venue for Pakistan with five of its seven matches being staged at Grace Road including matches against England on 27 June and Australia on 5 July.
The two semi-finals will be in Derby and Bristol on 18 and 20, culminating with a Lord’s final on 23 July.
