The Champions Trophy will return for the first time in eight years when it starts with co-host Pakistan taking on New Zealand in Karachi on Wednesday.
It is the first time a global ICC competition has been played in Pakistan since the 1996 World Cup, but not all fixtures will take place there.
The Indian government ruled that their side would not tour Pakistan, so their games will be played in Dubai instead.
It means the venue for the final will only be decided five days before it happens. If it involves India, it will be in Dubai. If not, then it’ll go ahead in Lahore.
Format
The Champions Trophy is a return to the days when people used to think a quick tournament was a good tournament. There are eight teams, playing 15 one-day international matches in the space of 19 days.
That is two groups of four to start with, leading in to two semi-finals and then the final.
Rankings
Group A
- Bangladesh (current ICC ODI ranking: 9)
- India (1)
- New Zealand (4)
- Pakistan (3)
Group B
- Afghanistan (8)
- Australia (2)
- England (7)
- South Africa (6)
Fixtures
All matches start at 2pm Pakistan Standard time, which is 1pm in the UAE.
Wednesday, February 19 – Pakistan v New Zealand, National Stadium, Karachi
Thursday February 20 – Bangladesh v India, Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Friday February 21 – Afghanistan v South Africa, National Stadium, Karachi
Saturday February 22 – Australia v England, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Sunday February 23 – Pakistan v India, Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Monday February 24 - Bangladesh v New Zealand, Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi
Tuesday February 25 – Australia v South Africa, Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi
Wednesday February 26 – Afghanistan v England, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Thursday February 27 – Pakistan v Bangladesh, Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi
Friday February 28 – Afghanistan v Australia, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Saturday March 1 – South Africa v England, National Stadium, Karachi
Sunday March 2 – New Zealand v India, Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Knock outs
Tuesday March 4 – Semi-final 1, Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
(This will involve India if they qualify)
Wednesday March 5 – Semi-final 2, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
(This will involve Pakistan if they qualify)
Final
Sunday March 9 – Final - Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
(If India qualify, the final will be played at Dubai International Stadium)
Tickets for India’s matches in Dubai
On Sunday, additional tickets were made available for the three-group stage India matches and the first semi-final, all of which are being played in Dubai. Tickets are available here: https://www.iccchampionstrophy.com/tickets
Tickets for the final will be available for purchase following the conclusion of the first semi-final in Dubai.
Broadcast
The Champions Trophy can be watched on CricLife Max in the UAE, and the Starzplay app.
There will also be radio coverage on Talk 100.3FM and Big 106.2.
Prize money
The winners will earn $2.24 million, with $1.12m going to the runners up. The losing semi-finalists take $560,000 each, from the total prize pot of $6.9 million. It is a 53 per cent increase on what was available the last time the tournament was played, in 2017.
Each group match win brings with it just over $34,000. Teams that finished fifth or sixth will each earn $350,000 while the seventh and eighth-placed sides receive $140,000. All eight sides get $125,000 each for playing in the Champions Trophy.
Squads
Group A
Bangladesh: Nazmul Hossain Shanto (c), Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Tawhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Mahmudullah, Jaker Ali Anik, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Parvez Hossai Emon, Nasum Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Nahid Rana.
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy.
New Zealand: Mitchell Santner (captain), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Jacob Duffy, Nathan Smith, Kane Williamson, Will Young.
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Group B
Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Ikram Alikhil, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Nangyal Kharoti, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Farid Malik, Naveed Zadran.
Australia: Steve Smith (captain), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa.
England: Jos Buttler (captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Tom Banton, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Jamie Smith, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Saqib Mahmood, Phil Salt, Mark Wood.
South Africa: Temba Bavuma (captain), Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen, Corbin Bosch.
