The International Cricket Council (ICC) has officially awarded the hosting rights for the inaugural Women’s Champions Trophy 2027 to India. The six-team T20 tournament will be played from February 14 to 28, next year.
After considering bids from Bangladesh, South Africa, and India, the global cricket governing body selected the latter as their choice.
The ICC Board ratified the decision to award the coveted event to the world’s second most populous country after the previous host, Sri Lanka, failed to fulfill certain administrative and structural requirements that were set forth during the ICC’s Annual Conference in Pakistan recently.
The prime ICC event, involving top-six women’s teams from across the world, will be played at two historical venues in India – The Cricket Club of India in Mumbai and the Vadodara International Cricket Stadium in Vadodara.
Six teams, which include powerhouses such as Australia, England, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and the hosts themselves, will feature in a round-robin format and the top two sides in the points tally will qualify for the final on February 28.
Pakistan will not participate in the tournament, as qualification was strictly defined on the basis of the ICC T20I team rankings, the highest-ranked six countries of which all have already secured qualification.
ICC Chairman Jay Shah declared: “Establishing an annual premier women’s event is essential for building rhythm and developing a competitive global playing base to serve a wider fanbase.”
India goes into the tournament with winning ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, while Australia stands tall as the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup holders.
Hosting the inaugural event at two world-class Indian venues will ensure an elevated experience through large capacities and state-of-the-art broadcasting facilities.
In an attempt to offer increasing incentives for performances, cricketing powers are increasingly adhering to rankings-based qualification standards, which is certain to bring the highest level of competition to the 2027 Women’s Champions Trophy.
