Australia, England to meet early in Cup

| December 15, 2021

Six-times champions Australia will meet defending women’s ODI champions England in their opening match of the 2022 World Cup.

Hosts New Zealand open the tournament a day earlier against the West Indies on March 4, the International Cricket Council said on Wednesday as it released the tournament schedule.

India, the 2017 runners-up, take on arch-rivals Pakistan on March 6.

The first semi-final will be held at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on March 30, while Hagley Oval in Christchurch will host the second on March 31 and the final on April 3.

Australia, England, South Africa and India qualified for the event through the ICC Women’s Championship 2017-20, while New Zealand automatically qualified as hosts.

Bangladesh, Pakistan and West Indies were the last three teams to qualify, sealing their spots on the basis of rankings after a qualifying tournament was abandoned due to travel bans prompted by the discovery of the Omicron COVID-19 variant.