Will Fans Get Two India-Pakistan World Cup Matches?
News Desk
Islamabad: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has unveiled a revamped format for the 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, introducing structural changes that could increase the likelihood of an additional India-Pakistan matches during the tournament.
The 2027 World Cup, to be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, will feature 14 teams. However, unlike previous editions, the tournament will begin with a preliminary stage involving the three lowest-ranked qualified teams. Only one of them will progress to the main competition, which will comprise 12 teams.
The main tournament will be divided into two groups of six teams each. Following the group phase, the ICC will replace the traditional Super Six stage with a new Super Seven round, where teams will play additional high-stakes matches before the tournament moves directly to the semi-finals, eliminating the quarter-final stage.
According to the ICC, the revised format is designed to make the competition more competitive by reducing the number of low-impact matches and increasing the significance of every game.
One of the major outcomes of the new structure is the possibility of India and Pakistan meeting more than once during the tournament if both teams advance beyond the group stage. The arch-rivals typically face each other only in ICC events and the Asia Cup, as bilateral cricket between the two nations has remained suspended for years due to political tensions.
An India-Pakistan fixture is widely regarded as cricket’s biggest rivalry and remains one of the ICC’s most commercially valuable matches, attracting massive global television audiences and generating significant broadcasting and sponsorship revenue.
Alongside the ODI World Cup changes, the ICC also approved a revised format for the 2028 Men’s T20 World Cup. The tournament will continue to feature 20 teams, but 10 sides will progress beyond the group stage instead of eight. The top two teams in the Super 10 stage will qualify directly for the semi-finals, while the remaining two semi-final spots will be decided through a new eliminator phase.
Separately, the ICC approved a financial assistance package worth US$12.82 million for Cricket West Indies to support the regional board’s operational and financial requirements.
Unlike other major cricket nations, the West Indies field a combined regional team representing multiple Caribbean countries and territories, making travel and administration significantly more expensive than for national boards such as India, England and Australia.
