The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2021, which was taking place in Zimbabwe, has been called off.
The tournament, which runs until December 5, will determine the final three spots for next year’s ICC Women’s World Cup in New Zealand, as well as the remaining two berths in the ICC Women’s Championship cycle.
The ICC has decided to cancel the tournament, with qualification slots determined by team rankings, in accordance with the tournament’s playing conditions, due to the emergence of the latest Covid-19 variant in South Africa and the introduction of travel restrictions from a number of African countries, including the host country Zimbabwe.
As a result, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the West Indies will now qualify for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand, with Sri Lanka and Ireland occupying the other ICC Women’s Championship slots for the 2022-25 cycle.
“We are extremely disappointed to have to cancel the remainder of this event,” said Chris Tetley, ICC Head of Events, “but with travel restrictions from a number of African countries being imposed at such short notice, there was a serious risk that teams would be unable to return home.”
“We looked into a few options to allow us to finish the event, but none of them are feasible, so the teams will be flown out of Zimbabwe as soon as possible. By virtue of their rankings, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the West Indies will now qualify for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022, while Sri Lanka and Ireland will also compete in the next cycle of the ICC Women’s Championship “Added he.
Two of the three matches scheduled for Saturday – Zimbabwe v Pakistan and the United States v Thailand – went ahead as planned, but the third match, between the West Indies and Sri Lanka, was cancelled after a member of the Sri Lankan team support staff tested positive for COVID-19.
