West Indies to begin World T20 defence against England on October 23

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday announced the fixtures for the Men’s World T20, to be held in the United Arab Emirates and Oman from October 17 to November 14.

West Indies, the only side to win the tournament twice, will feature on the opening day of the Super 12s as they kick off their defence of the title in Dubai against England, top ranked in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings.

West Indies captain Kieron Pollard is promising exciting cricket, the type that helped them defeat England in a pulsating final at the Eden Gardens in 2016 with Carlos Brathwaite blasting four consecutive sixes in the last over to turn the tables on 2010 champions England.

“We are excited to begin defence of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title later this year. T20 cricket is dynamic and the international scene is highly competitive, with players constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation and we are expecting a spectacular event in the United Arab Emirates and Oman,” Pollard said.

“We have a particularly interesting Super 12 group, which sees us come up against Australia, England and South Africa. We can’t wait to get started! West Indian cricketers have always played an exciting brand of cricket and I am sure our fans in the Caribbean and all over the world are highly anticipating seeing us in action.”

West Indies Match Schedule

October 23: v England at Dubai (18:00h/10:00h Eastern Caribbean/09:00h Jamaica)

October 26: v South Africa at Dubai (14:00h/06:00h Eastern Caribbean/05:00h Jamaica)

October 29: v B2 at Sharjah (14:00h/08:00h Eastern Caribbean/07:00h Jamaica)

November 4: v A1, at Abu Dhabi (18:00h/10:00h Eastern Caribbean/09:00h Jamaica)

November 6: v Australia at Abu Dhabi (14:00h/06:00h Eastern Caribbean/05:00h Jamaica)

View full tournament fixture HERE

The groupings:

Round One

Group A: Sri Lanka, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Namibia

Group B: Bangladesh, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, and Oman

(Top two teams from each group advance to Super 12s)

Super 12s

Group 1: England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, A1 and B2

Group 2: India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, A2 and B1

(Top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals)