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Cape Town - The International Cricket Council on Thursday confirmed the schedule of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, which will be staged in England and Wales from May 30 to July 14.
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England will open the tournament at The Oval on May 30 when they will take on South Africa, while Australia will launch their title defence on June 1 against the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier champions Afghanistan in a day/night match in Bristol.
Reigning ICC Champions Trophy winners and former champions Pakistan will start their campaign against the ICC World Twenty20 winners and two-time former champions the Windies at Trent Bridge in Nottingham on May 31.
India, the 1983 and 2011 world champions who also won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013 in England and Wales, will play their first match on June 5 against South Africa at the Hampshire Bowl in Southampton.
Their feature match against traditional rivals Pakistan will be at Old Trafford in Manchester on June 16.
Old Trafford in Manchester and Edgbaston in Birmingham will stage the two semi-finals on July 9 and 11, while Lord's will play host to a World Cup final for the fifth time, on July 14. All these three matches will have reserve days.
Eleven world-class venues will be used in the 46-day tournament in which each side will play the other once in a single-league format with the top four sides after 45 matches progressing to the semi-finals.
Old Trafford in Manchester will host maximum six matches, while Edgbaston in Birmingham, Hampshire Bowl in Southampton, Lord’s and The Oval (both in London), and Trent Bridge in Nottingham will stage five matches each. Cardiff Wales Stadium in Cardiff and Headingley in Leeds have been allocated four matches each and County Ground Bristol in Bristol, County Ground Taunton in Taunton and The Riverside in Chester-le-Street have got three matches each.
ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said: "It's always an exciting moment ahead of any major event to announce the schedule and for the ICC Cricket World Cup. Next summer fans around the world will be treated to compelling and competitive cricket as the best teams in the world go head to head in this round-robin format for the right to be crowned World Champions.
"This schedule also gives fans across England and Wales the opportunity to watch world-class cricket on their doorstep with all teams moving around the country. We know from previous ICC events that every country will be proudly supported at each of the venues creating an exceptional atmosphere and a real celebration of the game."
ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Managing Director Steve Elworthy said: "Today's announcement of the schedule is another important moment in the build-up to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 - the moment that the tournament comes to life for teams and cricket lovers across the world. This is the flagship event in one-day cricket.
"There are some fantastic head-to-head fixtures - England v Australia at Lord's and India v Pakistan at Old Trafford as well as England v India at Edgbaston spring to mind. As organisers we can promise the teams and fans we will work hard to provide the perfect stage for this event.
"Because of the UK's diverse population, every competing team will also be guaranteed a 'home crowd' every time they play at some of the most iconic cricket grounds in the world.
"The Cricket World Cup is the third most watched global event and has huge interest and appeal among cricket fans. Our ambition is to grow the game and deliver the greatest ever cricket celebration and with that in mind we have very carefully developed our ticket prices.
"The prices have been tested with thousands of fans over the last six months, we have used external experts and consulted widely to ensure that they are good value versus other global sporting events. The prices balance accessibility with delivering the investment required to deliver a world-class event. All revenue is invested back in the game to grow cricket."
ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Schedule: By venue
All matches day matches unless otherwise stated
Cardiff Wales Stadium, Cardiff
June 1 - New Zealand v Sri Lanka
June 4 - Afghanistan v Sri Lanka
June 8 - England v Bangladesh
June 15 - South Africa v Afghanistan (d/n)
County Ground Bristol, Bristol
June 1 - Afghanistan v Australia (d/n)
June 7 - Pakistan v Sri Lanka
June 11 - Bangladesh v Sri Lanka
County Ground Taunton, Taunton
June 8 - Afghanistan v New Zealand (d/n)
June 12 - Australia v Pakistan
June 17 - Windies v Bangladesh
Edgbaston, Birmingham
June 19 - New Zealand v South Africa
June 26 - New Zealand v Pakistan
June 30 - England v India
July 2 - Bangladesh v India
July 11 - Second semi-final (2 v 3)
July 12 - Reserve day
Hampshire Bowl, Southampton
June 5 - South Africa v India
June 10 - South Africa v Windies
June 14 - England v Windies
June 22 - India v Afghanistan
June 24 - Bangladesh v Afghanistan
Headingley, Leeds
June 21 - England v Sri Lanka
June 29 - Pakistan v Afghanistan
July 4 - Afghanistan v Windies
July 6 - Sri Lanka v India
Lord's, London
June 23 - Pakistan v South Africa
June 25 - England v Australia
June 29 - New Zealand v Australia (d/n)
July 5 - Pakistan v Bangladesh (d/n)
July 14 - Final
July 15 - Reserve day
Old Trafford, Manchester
June 16 - India v Pakistan
June 18 - England v Afghanistan
June 22 - Windies v New Zealand (d/n)
June 27 - Windies v India
July 6 - Australia v South Africa (d/n)
July 9 - First semi-final (1 v 4)
July 10 - Reserve day
The Oval, London
May 30 - England v South Africa
June 2 - South Africa v Bangladesh
June 5 - Bangladesh v New Zealand (d/n)
June 9 - India v Australia
June 15 - Sri Lanka v Australia
The Riverside, Chester-le-Street
June 28 - Sri Lanka v South Africa
July 1 - Sri Lanka v Windies
July 3 - England v New Zealand
Trent Bridge, Nottingham
May 31 - Windies v Pakistan
June 3 - England v Pakistan
June 6 - Australia v Windies
June 13 - India v New Zealand
June 20 - Australia v Bangladesh
