The ICC has now verified that nine games in the 2017 ODI World Cup have had their start dates or timings modified, including the India-Pakistan encounter in Ahmedabad, which will now be played – as previously reported by ESPNcricinfo – on October 14 instead of October 15. Less than two months before the commencement of the game’s centrepiece event, the ICC confirmed the alterations.
The three teams who have had three games moved by date (and one for start time in England’s case) are Pakistan, Bangladesh, and England. Pakistan’s match against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad has been rescheduled from October 12 to October 10 in order to allow them more time to prepare for their India encounter as a result of the change in the India-Pakistan game. The Australia-South Africa game, however, has also been moved up a day and will now take place on October 12 rather than October 13.
Originally slated for October 14, the England-Afghanistan match in Delhi will now take place on October 15.
The day-night encounter between New Zealand and Bangladesh will now take place on October 13 instead of the originally scheduled day game on October 14 in Chennai. The England-Bangladesh match will still take place in Dharamsala on October 10, but it will now be a daytime match rather than a day-night match.
Following concerns expressed by the Kolkata police to the Cricket Association of Bengal regarding holding a match on the same day as the Hindu festival of Kali Puja, the double-header that was scheduled for November 12 — Australia vs. Bangladesh in Pune and England vs. Pakistan in Kolkata — will now be played on November 11.
Instead of November 11, India will now play the Netherlands in Bengaluru to round out the league stage of the World Cup. The World Cup begins on October 5 in Ahmedabad with England vs. New Zealand, and it concludes on November 18 with the championship match, also in Ahmedabad. The semi-final matches will take place on November 15 and 16, respectively, in Mumbai and Kolkata. The ICC also disclosed that starting on August 25, tickets for the event would be available online.
The 2023 ODI World Cup schedule was finally made public on June 27 after a lengthy delay, just 100 days before the competition began on October 5 in Ahmedabad. In contrast, the schedules for the previous two tournaments, which were held in Australia and New Zealand (2015) and England and Wales (2019), were made public more than 12 months in advance.
The original date of the India vs. Pakistan game, October 15, coincided with the opening day of Navaratri, a significant, nine-day Hindu holiday. It later came to light that Ahmedabad’s municipal police had expressed worries about providing appropriate protection on that day.
However, Jay Shah, the secretary of the BCCI, had disregarded that as the cause. He had stated, “If security was an issue, then why would the match go there [to Ahmedabad] – 14-15 is not the problem,” following a BCCI meeting on July 27. “Based on the logistical difficulties, two or three boards have written in to request a modification. When there is only a two-day break between matches, it will be challenging to play, travel the next day, and play again.
