(Web Desk) - The International Cricket Council (ICC) stated that the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, set to be held in October, has been moved out of Bangladesh.
The highly-anticipated ninth edition of the tournament will now take place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) continuing to host the event.
The tournament will take place across the two venues in the UAE – Dubai and Sharjah – from 3 to 20 October.
Australian captain Meg Lanning and her team celebrated in style as they lifted the trophy at Newlands in Cape Town after beating South Africa in the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
“It is a shame not to be hosting the Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh as we know the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) would have staged a memorable event,” ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice said in a statement.
“I would like to thank the team at the BCB for exploring all avenues to try and enable the event to be hosted in Bangladesh, but travel advisories from the governments of a number of the participating teams meant that wasn’t feasible. However, they will retain hosting rights. We look forward to taking an ICC global event to Bangladesh in the near future.
“I’d also like to thank the Emirates Cricket Board for stepping in to host on behalf of the BCB and Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe for their generous offers of support, and we look forward to seeing ICC global events in both of those countries in 2026.”
The UAE, home to the ICC headquarters, has become a significant hub for cricket in recent years, hosting numerous qualifier tournaments as well as the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2021 alongside Oman.
With its world-class facilities and infrastructure, the UAE is well-equipped to stage the Women’s T20 World Cup.
The country's growing prominence in the sport is reflected in the rise of both its men’s and women’s teams, each currently ranked 16th in the ICC T20I Team Rankings.
Greg Barclay confirmed to the board that he would step down as the ICC Chairperson after his tenure ends in November.
Barclay was appointed as the Independent ICC Chair in November 2020, before being re-elected unopposed in 2022.
Current directors are required to submit nominations for the next Chair by 27 August 2024. If there are more than two candidates, an election will be held, with the new Chair's term beginning on 1 December 2024.