The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced major changes in men’s events. The new changes include introducing a three-stage format for the 14-team ODI World Cup and expanding the second stage of the T20 World Cup to a ‘Super 10’ format with eliminators.
The decisions were finalized at the ICC Annual Conference in Edinburgh, following recommendations from the Chief Executives Committee (CEC). The governing body said the aim was to “create greater entertainment value, raise the level of competition and enhance the experience for athletes and fans.”
What changes happened in Cricket World Cup?
Although 14 teams will continue to participate in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, the format of the tournament will be different from the old format. There will be a three stage competition which will go till the final. The three lowest-ranked teams (Teams 12, 13, and 14) will initially face each other in round one, dubbed the ‘Super Series’, with only the top team advancing to the main stage.
There will be 12 teams in Round 2, which will be divided into two groups of six teams each. The top three teams from each group, along with the next highest-ranked team in both groups, will advance to a new seven-team round-robin stage dubbed the ‘Super 7’. The top four teams from the Super 7 stage will qualify for the semi-finals.
Emerging teams will get a chance
ICC said, “This structure is designed to strengthen the competitive environment at each stage of the event, with Round 1 and Round 2 matches being more impactful, with the seven qualifying teams in the Super 7 stage going through a round-robin stage to qualify for the semi-finals. Enhanced results and increased entertainment will further enhance the fan experience while also allowing emerging teams to compete on cricket’s biggest stage.” Will continue to get opportunities to do so.”
Rules changed in T20 World Cup also
Meanwhile, encouraged by the performance of the emerging nations in the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup edition, the ICC has decided to expand the second stage of the 20-team event from eight to ten teams. The initial group stage will now consist of five groups of four teams each (total 30 matches), which is different from the previous format of four groups of five teams each. The top two teams from each group will advance to the ‘Super 10’ stage, which will have two groups of five teams each.
In a major change to the path to the knockouts, only the top team from each Super 10 group will qualify directly for the semi-finals. The teams finishing second and third in their respective groups will face each other in a cross-over ‘eliminator’ to seal the remaining two semi-final spots.
Preparation for 2028 T20 World Cup
The ICC said, “This promises to increase the representation of emerging cricket nations at the Super 10 stage, as well as provide better competitive standards. The addition of the ‘Eliminator’, where the second and third ranked teams from their groups at the Super 10 stage compete against each other for spots in the semi-finals, also has a major impact on the final matches of the Super 10 stage.”
The ICC board also laid out a roadmap for other teams to qualify for the 2028 T20 World Cup cycle. Specifically, Scotland have been granted direct entry into the Europe Regional Finals, bypassing the earlier stage – where they came as a late replacement for Bangladesh – due to the extraordinary circumstances surrounding their participation in the 2026 event.
How will the teams qualify?
The teams that did not qualify directly for the 2026 tournament will go straight to the global qualifiers. They will be joined by eight teams emerging from the regional qualifiers. There will be two teams each from Africa, Asia and Europe, and one each from the Americas and the East Asia-Pacific region.
“The top team from each region in the Global Qualifier, and the next three top teams overall, will qualify for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2028,” the ICC said.
Although the format has been approved by the ICC Board on the recommendations of the Development and Chief Executives Committees, the final approval on this broad roadmap will be taken after review by the Financial and Commercial Affairs Committee during the November meetings. –