MUMBAI (Kashmir English): Pakistan will open the T20 World Cup tournament against the Netherlands in Colombo today (Saturday).
Cricket fans saw an acrimonious build‑up of the T20 World Cup overshadowed by political discord, with Bangladesh kicked out and Pakistan refusing to face arch-rivals and co-hosts India.
Pakistan will open the tournament against the Netherlands in Colombo. Defending champions India will make their tournament bow in the night match on day one against the United States in Mumbai.
Led by Suryakumar Yadav, India are expected to ease into the Super Eight stage from Group A.
Former champions Australia and England are also strong contenders to lift the cup and deny holders India the title for a record second straight time.
T20 World Cup schedule
Matches typically start at 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM, and 7:00 PM local time.
Date Match Venue Time (Local)
Sat, Feb 7 Pakistan vs Netherlands SSC, Colombo 11:00 AM
Sat, Feb 7 West Indies vs Scotland Eden Gardens, Kolkata 3:00 PM
Sat, Feb 7 India vs USA Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai 7:00 PM
Sun, Feb 8 New Zealand vs Afghanistan M.A. Chidambaram, Chennai 11:00 AM
Sun, Feb 8 England vs Nepal Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai 3:00 PM
Sun, Feb 8 Sri Lanka vs Ireland R. Premadasa, Colombo 7:00 PM
Mon, Feb 9 Scotland vs Italy Eden Gardens, Kolkata 11:00 AM
Mon, Feb 9 Zimbabwe vs Oman SSC, Colombo 3:00 PM
Mon, Feb 9 South Africa vs Canada Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad 7:00 PM
Tue, Feb 10 Netherlands vs Namibia Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi 11:00 AM
Tue, Feb 10 New Zealand vs UAE M.A. Chidambaram, Chennai 3:00 PM
Tue, Feb 10 Pakistan vs USA SSC, Colombo 7:00 PM
Wed, Feb 11 South Africa vs Afghanistan Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad 11:00 AM
Wed, Feb 11 Australia vs Ireland R. Premadasa, Colombo 3:00 PM
Wed, Feb 11 England vs West Indies Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai 7:00 PM
Group Stage: February 7 – February 20.
Super 8 Stage: February 21 – March 1.
Semi-finals: March 4 and March 5.
Final: March 8.
Venues
Matches are held across eight stadiums: five in India (Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai) and three in Sri Lanka (Pallekele and two grounds in Colombo).
Pakistan boycott
The Pakistan government has announced a boycott of the highly anticipated Group A match against India scheduled for February 15 in Colombo.
Final venue
The final is set for the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, unless Pakistan qualifies, in which case it will be moved to R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
