The ICC Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier will take place in Abu Dhabi from September 18 to September 25, the international cricket body said on Wednesday.
For the final two berths at the T20 World Cup in South Africa next year, eight teams will fight during the Qualifier.
On the first day of the international qualification, hosts the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will play Thailand at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Day one matches for Zimbabwe and Papua New Guinea will both take place at the nearby Tolerance Oval.
The remaining teams competing in the qualifying to join hosts South Africa, Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and the West Indies at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup next year are Bangladesh, Ireland, Scotland, and the United States.
The Tolerance Oval will host the matches, which will be the first full internationals played there since it received ICC accreditation. The final and both semifinal matches will be played at the Zayed Cricket Stadium, according to a press statement from the ICC.
The top two teams in the Tyres ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings, Bangladesh and Thailand, who participated in the hugely successful T20 World Cup in Australia in 2020 and were thus qualified for this competition, are placed in different groups.
In Group A, Bangladesh, Ireland, Scotland, and the United States are grouped with Bangladesh, while Thailand is in Group B with Zimbabwe, Papua New Guinea (PNG), and the United Arab Emirates. The top two teams from each group advance to the semifinals, where the two winners are guaranteed spots in the T20 World Cup.
"With eight evenly matched sides vying for two spots in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa next year, this T20 World Cup Qualifier is going to be a terrific tournament. Given that every ICC zone will be represented in Abu Dhabi, the women's game will be fiercely contested. Over the past four years, the quality of competition has increased dramatically "Chris Tetley, head of events for the ICC, remarked.
"The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2022, which was a major success, and the sport's recent debut at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham have given the women's game a lot of momentum right now. We will be able to build on that and, in keeping with our global growth strategy, reach more people with women's cricket than ever before thanks to the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa "he added.
Women's cricket has never been in better shape, both globally and in the UAE, according to Emirates Cricket Development Manager Andrew Russell, and it is crucial to our Board that we maintain this momentum. By hosting this famous event, which we believe can be a catalyst for the sport's growth in this nation and throughout our region, we hope to accomplish just that.
"I strongly encourage everyone to attend and show their support for the UAE team and the other seven incredibly brilliant teams, especially the parents, relatives, and friends of all young girls who might be motivated to participate in and achieve in sports by this tournament. This is not just a chance to see top-notch cricket at the Zayed Cricket Stadium; it also has the potential to inspire a new generation of ladies to take up this amazing sport. Additionally, we anticipate the opening of the recently accredited Tolerance Oval at this event " he added.
The remaining nations qualified through the Regional Qualifiers, while Bangladesh and Thailand occupied the two spaces designated for the final two placed teams from the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020.
Scotland (Europe), UAE (Asia), USA (America), and Zimbabwe (Africa) have advanced after winning their respective regional competitions, while PNG is the highest-ranked team from East Asia Pacific as of November 30, 2021, despite the region's inability to hold a competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The highest-ranked team from the regional tournaments to not qualify was Ireland.