World Cup 2027 dates out [Source: AFP]The 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup is set to be hosted by three countries, with South Africa likely to host the bulk of the matches. Fellow African nations Zimbabwe and Namibia will be the co-hosts of the 14th edition of the tournament. As per a latest report, the dates of the 2027 ICC World Cup have also been unveiled. The report indicates that the schedule of next year’s mega event will follow dates similar to the 2023 edition, as hosted by India over two years ago. World Cup 2027 set to run from October 4 and November 21The 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup will be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia; likely between October 4 and November 21 next year. An ESPNCricinfo report learned about the dates, as agreed upon the ICC board meeting in Ahmedabad last month. Interestingly, the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup ran between October 5 and November 19 in India, with next year’s 2027 edition set to follow a similar scheduling pattern. An exact schedule of the 2027 World Cup will be decided at the ICC Annual General Meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland in July.Also Read- Ajit Agarkar Takes Drastic Step To Set India's 2027 World Cup RoadmapIt is also understood that the eight South African venues will be hosting at least 41 of the 54 matches of the tournament, with the rest to be distributed between Zimbabwe’s three venues and Namibia. The 2027 Cricket World Cup will mark the return of the ODI spectacle to South Africa after 24 years, considering South Africa, Zimbabwe last co-hosted a World Cup way back in 2003 alongside Kenya. Since then, South Africa has hosted the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy and the 2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Zimbabwe and Namibia, meanwhile, co-hosted the 2026 ICC Men’s Under-19 World Cup earlier this year. Which teams have qualified for 2027 World Cup so far?Unlike the 2019 and 2023 editions, the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup will be played between 14 participating nations. As many as 54 matches will be conducted in the tournament, making it the joint-largest edition in terms of number of matches, alongside the 2003 event which was also hosted by South Africa and Zimbabwe.As hosts and full members, South Africa and Zimbabwe have earned direct qualification, but Namibia will have to go through the standard qualification pathway.The top eight teams in the ICC ODI rankings as of March 31, 2027 will qualify for the 14-nation event, while the remaining four nations will be determined through ICC qualification tournaments. For West Indies, the qualification scenario seems to have intensified especially after their ODI series loss to Sri Lanka. World Cup 2027 likely to be Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s swansong The 2027 World Cup in South Africa will likely be the swansong international assignment for former Indian captains and modern-day batting greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The two cricketers have already announced their retirements from Tests and T20Is, and will be pushing closer to 40 by the time of the 2027 event.Both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli came agonizingly close in lifting the 2023 World Cup together, only to lose out to an insurgent Australian unit in Ahmedabad in November 2023. Also Read- India Star Undergoes Surgery; Pens Emotional Note On Instagram
