World Twenty20 South Africa
30 July 2007
The countdown to the ICC World Twenty20 Championship is on after the tournament was officially launched at the Northgate Dome in Johannesburg on Thursday, along with plenty of "sportainment" razzmatazz.
South Africa was given the honour of hosting the first World Cup in the all-action 20-overs-a-side version of the game after successfully hosting the Cricket World Cup in 2003.
The 13-day, 12 nation event will be played at three venues: the Wanderers in Johannesburg, Kingsmead in Durban and Newlands in Cape Town.
The opening match, between South Africa and the West Indies, takes place at the Wanderers on 11 September, with the final scheduled for the same venue on 24 September to coincide with SA's Heritage Day public holiday.
'Short, sharp event'
Speaking at
Thursday's launch, ICC CEO Malcolm Speed described the event as "one of the most exciting developments in the game of cricket within the past 30 years.
"It will bring many of the best international players from around the world together for a short, sharp event we believe will capture the public's imagination, both in South Africa and around the world," Speed said.
ICC President Ray Mali said he was looking forward to the event with a mixture of pride and excitement.
"Pride, because it is taking place in my home country, and I know we will do a great job of hosting the event and showcasing the game in the best possible light. And excitement because the event marks a first for cricket - the first time this format of the game will be played on a truly global scale."
Groups
The tournament features 12 teams, divided into four groups of three sides each, with the seeding based on the one-day international rankings as of 1 March
2007.
SA face the West Indies and Bangladesh in group A; Australia mix it up with England and Zimbabwe in group B; New Zealand take on Sri Lanka and Kenya in group C; and Pakistan, India and Scotland do battle in group D.
The group stage will be followed by a Super Eights, involving the top two finishers in each group, leading into the semifinals - to be played in Durban and Cape Town - and the final in Johannesburg.
Preparations on track
Tournament director Steve Elworthy said the organisers were "in the final implementation stages, and preparations are progressing extremely well.
"Expectations of this event are ever-increasing, and the public are responding," Elworthy said.
"The launch was fantastic, and if this is what we are to expect for the duration of the tournament, then everybody who experiences a match, on TV or at the stadium, will be truly entertained."
SouthAfrica.info reporter
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