World Cup 2025 / Announcement of the schedule of the World Cup to be held in India

ICC has announced the schedule of Women's World Cup 2025. The tournament will be held in India and Sri Lanka from 30 September to 2 November. 8 teams will participate. Pakistan will play its matches in Colombo. The final will be played in Bengaluru or Colombo on November 2.

World Cup 2025: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the schedule of the Women's ODI World Cup 2025, and this time India has got the honor of hosting it. This is a historic moment for cricket lovers, as the Women's World Cup is returning to India after 12 years. Earlier in the year 2016, India hosted the Women's T20 World Cup. The 2025 tournament will run from 30 September to 2 November, in which five major cities—Bengaluru, Guwahati, Indore, Visakhapatnam and Colombo—will host its matches.

Tournament format and teams

This time 8 teams will participate in the World Cup:

Host India
Australia
England
New Zealand
South Africa
Sri Lanka
Pakistan
Bangladesh

Australia will play as the defending champion this time too. It won the title by defeating England in the 2022 World Cup. It is worth noting that Australia is the most successful team in the history of Women's World Cup, which has won the title seven times so far.

Special arrangements for hosting matches between India and Pakistan

Most of the matches of the tournament will be played in India:
Bengaluru: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium
Guwahati: ACA Stadium
Indore: Holkar Stadium
Visakhapatnam: ACA-VDCA Stadium

However, Pakistan team will not come to India, and it will play all its matches at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. At the same time, India will play its first match in Bengaluru on 30 September.

League stage and knockout matches

The World Cup will be played in a round-robin format, in which there will be a total of 28 league matches. After this, the top 4 teams will qualify for the semi-finals.
First Semi-Final: Guwahati or Colombo on October 29 (if Pakistan qualifies)
Second Semi-Final: Bengaluru on October 30
Final: Bengaluru or Colombo on November 2 (venue will be decided based on finalist teams)

What is special this time?

For the first time, Pakistan's matches will be held at a neutral venue (Colombo) instead of India.
Possibility of finals in two different countries, which makes the tournament more exciting.
This event is being considered as a sign of the beginning of a new era for women's cricket in India, which will give a big platform to young female players.