Men's T20 World Cup Qualifier 2019: All you need to know
What's at stake?
Up for grabs are six places at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2020 in Australia from 18 October 2020 to 15 November 2020. The six qualifiers join Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the first round of the World Cup, to be played in two groups, with the top two in each group joining Australia, Pakistan, India, New Zealand, England, South Africa, West Indies and Afghanistan in the Super 12 stage.
Meet the captains of the #T20WorldCup Qualifier!
— T20 World Cup (@T20WorldCup) October 14, 2019
Who do you think will walk away with the trophy? pic.twitter.com/D36tiRr0Dq
The teams
Fourteen teams are participating in the qualifying tournament. In Group A are Scotland, the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Namibia, Singapore, Kenya and Bermuda. In Group B are hosts UAE, Ireland, Oman, Hong Kong, Canada, Jersey and Nigeria.
Scotland are the highest ranked side, at No.11 in the MRF Tyres ICC T20I Team Rankings. They are followed by UAE (No.12) and Ireland (No.14). Nepal, the No.13 side, missed out after being upset in the pathway tournament.
Scotland and Netherlands shared the trophy in the 2015 edition, after the final was washed out.
The venues
The tournament will be held between 18 October and 2 November in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Group A games are in Dubai, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and two ICC Academy Grounds. Group B games are in Abu Dhabi, at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium and the Tolerance Oval.
The final will be at the Dubai International Stadium.
The format
The teams are divided into two groups of seven. All members of a group play each other once. The table-topper of each group seals one qualification spot for the Men's T20 World Cup 2020, as well as a semi-final berth in the qualifying tournament.
The teams placed second and third in each group advance to the qualifying play-offs 1 and 2. The winners of those play-off games seal World Cup qualification and complete the semi-final line-up.
The losers of play-offs 1 and 2 take on the teams ranked fourth in the group stage in the qualifying play-offs 3 and 4, with the winners claiming the final two World Cup spots, before they fight it out for fifth place in the tournament.
The #T20WorldCup Qualifier 2019 starts on Friday! @niallnobiobrien takes us through everything you absolutely need to know about the tournament ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/pKetyqd9sc
— T20 World Cup (@T20WorldCup) October 16, 2019
How can I follow the tournament?
All matches in the Dubai International Stadium and Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium will be broadcast.
In-match clips and highlights of the other matches will be available on the T20 World Cup website and on social media. Follow @T20WorldCup on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for all the coverage.
