IMAGE: Eight countries including England, Australia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, South Africa and India will take part in the Deaf ICC T20 World Cup. Photograph: BCCI
India will host the Deaf ICC T20 World Cup slated to begin from November 23-30 in Gurugram, the organisers announced on Thursday.
The eight-day tournament will see participation from over 200 players across eight countries including England, Australia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, South Africa, apart from India, vying for the top honours.
The eight teams will be divided into two groups and each team will play three matches in the group stage. Two teams from each group will then qualify for the semi-finals.
The tournament will be hosted by the Deaf Cricket Society (DCS), the apex body governing, promoting and organizing cricket for the deaf in India, that is also affiliated to the Deaf International Cricket Council (Deaf ICC).
"Cricket
is still one of the most popular sports played and watched in the country. In 2017 alone, the sport enjoyed 717 million TV viewers and around 27 billion impressions per week. Today we are confident that disability sport such as cricket will gain momentum and support by this world class tournament being held in India," General Secretary, DCS, Sumit Jain, said in a media release.
Stefan Pichowski, Chairman, Deaf ICC said: "We are delighted that India is hosting the second edition of Deaf-ICC World Cup T20. The enthusiasm from the teams across the world is overwhelming and the visit to India will be very special as it is known for promoting the spirit of cricket."
