ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will kick off their bid for the ICC Men’s 50-overs World Cup in India on October 6 by taking on the Netherlands, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Thursday by releasing an updated schedule after Sri Lanka and the Netherlands qualified for the tournament last week.
Sri Lanka and the Netherlands were the two teams to make it through to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in India when the former beat the latter in the qualifier final in Harare on Sunday.
Pakistan’s participation in the mega tournament hangs in the balance, with the cricket board waiting for the government to provide clearance to Pakistan’s national squad to travel to India. As per the World Cup schedule released by the ICC, Pakistan were to play Qualifier 1 on October 6 in Hyderabad. The green shirts are scheduled to take on India in Ahmedabad on October 15 for a high-octane Word Cup clash with their arch-rivals.
“Netherlands, who finished runners-up in the Qualifier in Zimbabwe will open their campaign against Pakistan on 6 October in Hyderabad,” the ICC said on its website.
Pakistan will play their second match of the tournament against much tougher opponents Sri Lanka at the same venue before heading to Ahmedabad to face India on October 15.
The green shirts, who won the World Cup in 1992, will then square off against Australia in Bengaluru on October 20 and face Afghanistan on October 23 at Chennai.
The semifinals of the World Cup are scheduled to be played on November 15 and 16 while the final is scheduled to be held on November 19 at Ahmedabad.
