ICC World Cup 2023: Kolkata To Host One S/F but Here’s Why India May Not Play It

ICC World Cup 2023: As per ICC's provisions, India are unlikely to feature in the semi-final hosted by Kolkata.

ICC World Cup 2023: India are unlikely to feature in the semi-final in Kolkata's Eden Gardens.

(Photo: Twitter)

The schedule for 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup was officially unveiled on 27 June, with the competition set to run from 5 October to 19 November, across ten venues in India.

Three of those venues – Kolkata's Eden Gardens, Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium and Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium – have been finalised as the hosts of the three knockout matches.

Whilst the first semi-final will be played at the Wankhede Stadium on 14 November, Eden Gardens will host the second semi-final on 15 November, before the action shifts to Narendra Modi Stadium for the final on 19 November.

ICC World Cup 2023 Knockout Schedule:

• 14 November – Semi-Final 1 (1st Place vs 4th Place), Mumbai

• 15 November – Semi-Final 2 (2nd Place vs 3rd Place), Kolkata

• 19 November – Final (Winner of SF1 vs Winner of SF2), Ahmedabad

However, despite being given the hosting rights of a semi-final match, fans from Kolkata are unlikely to see India featuring in that game, owing to a provision stated by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

What Is the Rule?

ICC have mentioned that should India qualify for the semis, they will play their semi-final match in Mumbai, and not in Kolkata. The second and third-ranked teams from the league stage are scheduled to play their semi-final match in Kolkata, but even if they end up in either of these two positions, Rohit Sharma's men will still be playing in Mumbai.

ICC World Cup 2023: Provisions for knockout games.

(Photo: The Quint)

On the contrary, Pakistan will play their semi-final match in Kolkata should they qualify for that stage, even if they end up in either the first or the fourth place in the standings.

Only One Exception Possible

However, despite the rule reducing India's chances of playing the semi-final at Eden Gardens considerably, it is still not nil.

Should India and Pakistan meet in the semi-finals – for which they'll have to finish either as second and third, or first and fourth – the match will be held in Kolkata, irrespective of the positions.