Fixtures announced for 2022 T20 World Cup

England have been drawn against Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan and two qualifiers in Group 1 while India, Pakistan, South Africa, Bangladesh and two qualifiers are in Group 2 for the Super 12s

The ICC has announced the schedule for the 2022 T20 World Cup, with England drawn alongside hosts, and defending champions, Australia and 2021 finalists New Zealand in the Super 12s.

The 16-team, 45-match tournament, which was pushed back by 12 months due to Covid-19, is scheduled to begin on October 16 in Geelong and finish on November 13 at the MCG.  

England, Australia and New Zealand will be joined in Group 1 by Afghanistan and two first round qualifiers while India, Pakistan, South Africa, Bangladesh and two qualifiers will make up Group 2.

Sri Lanka, Namibia (both Group A), West Indies and Scotland (Group B) are already confirmed for the first round, with the remaining four teams to be determined by qualifying tournaments throughout 2022.

Round one is scheduled to run from October 16-21, with 2014 champions Sri Lanka facing Namibia in the opening match.

The 12 matches will be split evenly between Geelong’s Kardinia Park and Hobart’s Bellerive Oval.

^{England have been drawn against New Zealand [Alex Davidson/Getty Images], Australia [Alex Davidson/Getty Images] and Afghanistan [Francois Nel/Getty Images]}

The Super 12s (October 22-November 6) will begin with a rematch of last year’s final between Australia and New Zealand while India take on Pakistan 24 hours later to bring the curtain down on a blockbuster opening weekend. When the two sides met in the UAE, Pakistan recorded an historic 10-wicket victory.

Sydney, Perth, Hobart, Mebourne, Brisbane and Adelaide will all play host to Super 12 matches.

England begin their campaign against Afghanistan on October 22 in Perth. Eoin Morgan’s side will then face a qualifier on October 26 and Australia on October 28, with both matches taking place at the MCG. A trip to Brisbane to face New Zealand follows on November 1 before they round off their Super 12 campaign against a qualifier in Sydney on November 5.

The semi-finals will be held on November 9 and November 10 at the SCG and Adelaide Oval, respectively.

ICC CEO Geoff Allardice said: "T20 is the global growth format for cricket and the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 will play a huge role in inspiring our next generation of players and fans as the world’s best players descend on Australia and showcase the very best of our sport.

"This schedule offers so much, from the 2014 Champions Sri Lanka opening the event, to our defending champions Australia starting with a rematch of the 2021 Men’s T20 World Cup Final against New Zealand and of course India taking on Pakistan at the MCG.

"We know that hundreds of thousands of passionate cricket fans will turn out to support every single one of the 16 teams across all seven of our host cities which is what makes it so special for the players.

"You only need to cast your mind back to the brilliant ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 in Australia to know that this is going to be a wonderful event for players and fans alike."

Subscribe to The Cricketer for exclusive content every day: The inside track on everything England - including leading coverage of England in India, award-winning analysis, breaking news and interviews and the only place for in-depth county coverage all year round. Plus: An ad-free app experience at your fingertips. Subscribe to thecricketer.com today for just £1.