Pakistan to kick off ICC Champions Trophy 2017 campaign against India

The tournament will be contested in England from 1st June to 18th June, 2017. The matches will be played at Edgbaston, The Oval and Cardiff.

Eight teams, divided into two groups, will be taking part in the competition. Australia, New Zealand, England and Bangladesh are placed in Group A whereas Group B comprises of Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

The first match of the tournament will be played between England and Bangladesh at The Oval whereas Pakistan will play its opening game against India, who will be defending the title this year, at Edgbaston on 4th June.

“The ICC Champions Trophy is a short and sharp event, which is followed and enjoyed by the spectators and players alike,” Chief Executive of ICC David Richardson said. He added that the tournament has a great deal of value since it is being played just three months before the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 qualification cut-off date.

“The announcement of the ICC Champions Trophy schedule 12 months before the start of the event will provide sufficient time to all eight sides to plan for the tournament and arrive in England and Wales fully prepared and geared up so that they can collect enough points to directly qualify for the 2019 extravaganza,” he added.

England Cricket Board’s Director of Events Steve Elworthy said that the ICC Champions Trophy was a huge success in 2013 due to packed grounds and thrilling cricket. He expressed his optimism that the tournament will be successful once again.

South Africa won the inaugural edition of ICC Champions Trophy in 1998 followed by New Zealand in 2000. Sri Lanka and India jointly shared the trophy in 2002 and West Indies emerged victorious in 2004. Australia won the tournament in back-to-back fashion in 2006 and 2009.

India won the 2013 edition of the tournament.

Full schedule of ICC Champions Trophy 2017

Thurs, 1 June – England v Bangladesh, The Oval (d)
Fri, 2 June – Australia v New Zealand, Edgbaston (d)
Sat, 3 June – Sri Lanka v South Africa, The Oval (d)
Sun, 4 June – India v Pakistan, Edgbaston (d)
Mon, 5 June – Australia v Bangladesh, The Oval (d/n)
Tues, 6 June – England v New Zealand, Cardiff (d)
Wed, 7 June – Pakistan v South Africa, Edgbaston (d/n)
Thurs, 8 June – India v Sri Lanka, The Oval (d)
Fri, 9 June – New Zealand v Bangladesh, Cardiff (d)
Sat, 10 June – England v Australia, Edgbaston (d)
Sun, 11 June – India v South Africa, The Oval (d)
Mon, 12 June – Sri Lanka v Pakistan, Cardiff (d)
Wed, 14 June – First semi-final (A1 v B2), Cardiff (d)
Thurs, 15 June – Second semi-final (A2 v B1), Edgbaston (d)
Sun, 18 June – Final, The Oval (d)