South Africa will host the first-ever ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup in January 2023. The tournament’s qualification phase began on June 3rd.
The World Cup, which had been scheduled for 2021 but was postponed owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, has been rescheduled for January 2023. It will serve as a warm-up for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, which will be held in February 2023 in South Africa.
Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and Zimbabwe will compete in the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, which will feature 16 teams from 11 full member nations.
Four of the remaining five seats will be selected through regional qualifiers, with the fifth spot going to the United States because it is the only Associate nation qualified to compete in the Americas area under the ICC’s Event Pathway Participation Criteria.
This competition will provide a platform for young women all across the world to demonstrate their abilities, as well as propel the growth and popularity of women’s cricket.
“We are ecstatic to be able to promote the development of young female players by hosting the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup on the eve of the senior event in South Africa,” said ICC Head of Events Chris Tetley.
“The ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup has provided a stepping stone for many of the world’s best male players, so we’re looking forward to seeing how the inaugural U19 women’s edition will help grow women’s cricket and increase the number of elite international playing opportunities for females in this age group in the years ahead.”
There will be 19 teams competing for four qualification berths across Asia, Europe, East Asia-Pacific (EAP), and Africa, with the Asia Qualifier taking place in Malaysia from June 3 to 9.
The Asia Qualifier will feature six teams — Bhutan, Malaysia, Nepal, Thailand, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates – competing in 15 matches, with the winner securing a spot in the main event.
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Aminul Islam, Asia Regional Development Manager, said he was looking forward to the Qualifier in his region and feels it will be a useful tool for spotting new potential.
“We’re about to embark on an amazing adventure in which some of Asia’s most promising young female talent will compete in Malaysia next week,” he said.
“All of the teams playing are hoping to make history by competing in the first-ever ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, and there’s no doubt we’ll witness some fantastic cricket to determine who qualifies.” Participants will have the chance to attend a high-performance seminar during the tournament as part of the ICC Asia event legacy.
“I’d like to express my gratitude to the Malaysia Cricket Association for their assistance in hosting this historic event,” Islam said.
In July and August, two teams will compete in the EAP (Indonesia, PNG) and Europe (Netherlands, Scotland) qualifiers, while nine teams will compete in Botswana in September for the Africa Championship.
