The Men’s Under-19 World Cup will return to South Africa in 2019 after being moved from Sri Lanka. Benoni will host the final. The tournament will run from January 19 to February 11.
The four groups remain the same as previously announced: Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, and Namibia are in Group C; Afghanistan, Pakistan, New Zealand, and Nepal are in Group D; and India, Bangladesh, Ireland, and the USA are in Group A. England, South Africa, West Indies, and Scotland are in Group B.
The opening day’s schedule includes two matches: Ireland against USA in Bloemfontein and South Africa versus West Indies in Potchefstroom. The next day, reigning champion India will kick off their campaign in Bloemfontein against 2020 champions Bangladesh.
The dates of the competition and the five locations—Manganung Oval in Bloemfontein, JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom, Buffalo Park in East London, Kimberley Oval, and Willowmoore Park in Benoni—were announced by an ICC statement on Monday.
Along with a new format, it will feature two groups of six teams competing to go to the semi-finals, with teams that advance from the four groups of four teams each going to a Super Six stage.
Due to significant government meddling in the SLC’s management, the ICC Board temporarily suspended Sri Lanka Cricket on November 23. As a result, the competition had to be moved outside of Sri Lanka.
“In the past 12 months we have seen South Africa successfully deliver two milestone events for the sport – the inaugural ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup last year, and the groundbreaking ICC Women’s T20 World Cup that immediately followed,” Chris Tetley, the International Cricket Council’s head of events, “The relocation of the U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 to South Africa allows us the opportunity to build on this momentum and welcome the best young cricketers on the planet to five notable international venues.”
“Even though the task of hosting the U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 has been conferred upon us with very tight timelines, we are happy to take on the challenge,” tournament director Wanele Mngomezulu stated. We have the chance to hone our abilities and skills even more by hosting this event in the lead-up to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027, which will take place in South Africa.
“Hosting the tournament on home soil is opportune for us to promote cricket to sport loving South Africans and attract new fans and young talent to the game, thereby driving our strategic pillars of excellence, access, and inclusion.”
The teams will each play two warm-up games in Johannesburg and Pretoria between January 13 and January 17 before of the event.
