ICC Cricket World Cup Super League

The ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League was an international cricket competition contested in the One Day International (ODI) Cricket format and the top level of the three-league Cricket World Cup qualification system which was introduced in 2019. 13 teams participated in the league, of which the top 8 teams directly qualify for the next Cricket World Cup and the bottom 5 teams advance to the World Cup Qualifier for another chance to qualify. The Super League replaced the ODI rankings as the route to direct qualification for the 2023 Cricket World Cup.[2] The only edition of the ODI Super League was between 2020–2023.[1][3]

ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League
SportCricket
Founded2019
First season2020–2023 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League
Replaced byICC Men's ODI Team Rankings[1]
AdministratorInternational Cricket Council
No. of teams13

Background

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The Super League was introduced after the 2019 Cricket World Cup and introduced improvements to the World Cup qualification process. The previous use of ODI rankings involved intricate calculations and was unbalanced. It was open to manipulation with no obligation for top teams to play against lesser teams, who were left with no chance to improve their positions. In comparison, the Super League has a simple points table and the same number of matches for each team.[4][5]

Facing better competition provided lesser teams with the prospect of better attendance, financial gain and increased popularity of cricket in their countries. The Netherlands were scheduled to host England in May 2021 but the series was pushed back a year as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic could have restricted attendance and made the series financially unviable.[6]

Competition

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The Super League formed part of the qualification process for the 2023 Cricket World Cup. This was the only time that this format has been used and it will not be used for 2027. 13 teams each played 24 matches and were ranked by their results. The fixtures were agreed by consensus between the teams.[7] The top ranked teams directly qualified for the World Cup while the remaining teams advanced to the 2023 Cricket World Cup Qualifier.[3]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Qualification pathway for 14-team 2027 men's ODI World Cup approved". ESPNcricinfo. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  2. ^ de Jong, Bertus (16 August 2019). "Explainer: With 2023 Cricket World Cup qualifying process underway, here's a breakdown of ICC's new-look league structure". Firstpost. Retrieved 16 August 2019.
  3. ^ a b "New qualification pathway for ICC Men's Cricket World Cup approved". International Cricket Council. 20 October 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  4. ^ Della Penna, Peter (14 August 2019). "The road to World Cup 2023: how teams can secure qualification, from rank No. 1 to 32". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 16 August 2019.
  5. ^ Della Penna, Peter (21 October 2018). "Associates pathway to 2023 World Cup undergoes major revamp". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  6. ^ Dobell, George (27 November 2020). "England won't be going Dutch as Netherlands ODI tour is postponed". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
  7. ^ "ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 Qualification Pathway Frequently Asked Questions" (PDF). International Cricket Council. 12 August 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 August 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
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