The ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 co-hosted by USA and West Indies which started with 20 teams in the group stages, will now see just eight teams move on to the next phase of the tournament, the Super 8.
Among the four groups A, B, C, and D, the top two teams from each group qualified for the Super 8 stages.
The Super 8 stage will see the eight teams put in two separate groups of four teams each, where they will play the other three teams in their group. Each team will therefore play three matches in the Super 8 and the top two teams from each of the two groups will then qualify for the semi-final.
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A majority of the teams were already aware about whom they were likely to meet in the Super 8 stage, if they qualified, ahead of the start of the tournament itself. This was due to a new seeding rule introduced by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
In this article, The Sporting News will explain about the pre-decided seeding rules put in place by the ICC ahead of the start of the T20 World Cup 2024.
What is the pre-tournament decided seeding at the T20 World Cup 2024?
The two groups in the Super 8 stage were largely decided based on pre-tournament seedings assigned to respective teams of all four groups in the preliminary stage. However, if the respective teams fail to make the Super Eight, then the next-best team in the group stage takes the seeding automatically. For example, since Pakistan incurred a group-stage exit, the second-best team from Group A, the USA, took A2 seeding.
The pre-tournament seeding was a new system that was introduced by cricket's governing body, the ICC ahead of the T20 World Cup, which gave teams like India, a good idea about which three teams they would face in the Super Eight, if they finished in the top two of group stages and qualified for the Super 8.
The seeding system was introduced to give more clarity over the schedule to travelling fans to the Caribbean and at the same time, to cater the match timing to prime viewership of the Indian audience.
| A1 | India |
| A2 | Pakistan |
| B1 | England |
| B2 | Australia |
| C1 | New Zealand |
| C2 | West Indies |
| D1 | South Africa |
| D2 | Sri Lanka |
The groups for the Super 8 were based on the pre-tournament seedings:
Group 1: A1, B2, C1, D2
Group 2: A2, B1, C2, D1
However, when teams like New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka failed to qualify for the Super 8 from their respective groups, another team which finished top two in their group was to replace them.
As a result, USA (A2), Afghanistan (C1), and Bangladesh (D2) were pooled into Group 2, Group 1 and Group 1, respectively.
What are the Super 8 groups at the T20 World Cup?
In Group 1, there are India, Australia, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, while in the Group 2, the USA, England, West Indies and South Africa, have been pooled together.
In essence, India knew that they would face Australia in the Super 8, if they both teams had finished top-two in their groups, even before the T20 World Cup had started.
| Group 1 teams | Group 2 teams |
|---|---|
| India (A1) | USA (A2) |
| Australia (B2) | England (B1) |
| Afghanistan (C1) | West Indies (C2) |
| Bangladesh (D2) | South Africa (D1) |
What is the schedule for the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2024?
The Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2024 will exclusively be played in the Caribbean, which includes venues like Antigua, Saint Lucia, Barbados, and Saint Vincent.
| Match Seeding | Fixture | Group | Date | Time (IST) | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A2 vs D1 | USA vs South Africa | Group 2 | June 19 | 8:00 PM | Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua |
| B1 vs C2 | England vs West Indies | Group 2 | June 20 | 6:00 AM | Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Saint Lucia |
| C1 vs A1 | Afghanistan vs India | Group 1 | June 20 | 8:00 PM | Kensington Oval, Barbados |
| B2 vs D2 | Australia vs Bangladesh | Group 1 | June 21 | 6:00 AM | Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua |
| B1 vs D1 | England vs South Africa | Group 2 | June 21 | 8:00 PM | Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Saint Lucia |
| A2 vs C2 | USA vs West Indies | Group 2 | June 22 | 6:00 AM | Kensington Oval, Barbados |
| A1 vs D2 | India vs Bangladesh | Group 1 | June 22 | 8:00 PM | Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua |
| C1 vs B2 | Afghanistan vs Australia | Group 1 | June 23 | 6:00 AM | Arnos Vale Stadium, Saint Vincent |
| A2 vs B1 | USA vs England | Group 2 | June 23 | 8:00 PM | Kensington Oval, Barbados |
| C2 vs D1 | West Indies vs South Africa | Group 2 | June 24 | 6:00 AM | Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua |
| B2 vs A1 | Australia vs India | Group 1 | June 24 | 8:00 PM | Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Saint Lucia |
| C1 vs D2 | Afghanistan vs Bangladesh | Group 1 | June 25 | 6:00 AM | Arnos Vale Stadium, Saint Vincent |
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