The Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027 runs from October 2 to November 21, 2027, across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Fourteen teams will play 57 matches at 12 venues, all listed in our 2027 World Cup venues and format guide.
Shubman Gill’s India open against Australia at Newlands, Cape Town, on October 7. India vs Pakistan follows on October 10 at the Wanderers in Johannesburg. The final is at the same ground on November 21.
Pakistan will get the headlines. The tougher opponent in India’s first week is the climb from sea level to the Highveld, with only 72 hours to adjust.
The ICC revealed the schedule in Cape Town on October 1, 2026, one year before the first ball.
| Date | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2, 4, 6 | Super Series (3 qualifiers) | Windhoek |
| Oct 7 | Australia vs India | Cape Town |
| Oct 8 | Afghanistan vs Pakistan | Tshwane |
| Oct 8 | England vs Bangladesh | Windhoek |
| Oct 9 | Zimbabwe vs Qualifier A | Bulawayo |
| Oct 9 | South Africa vs New Zealand | Cape Town |
| Oct 10 | India vs Pakistan | Johannesburg |
| Oct 10 | Sri Lanka vs Qualifier B | Windhoek |
| Nov 17 | Semi-final 1 | Cape Town |
| Nov 18 | Semi-final 2 | Tshwane |
| Nov 21 | Final | Johannesburg |
14 TEAMS. 57 MATCHES. THE WAIT IS OVER! THE ICC MEN’S CRICKET WORLD CUP 2027 SCHEDULE IS HERE! 🤯🏆🔥
ICC Men’s #CWC27 | Schedule Launch ➡️ LIVE NOW 👉 https://t.co/8RTd2NwakV pic.twitter.com/1Y1Yr2dYe1
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) October 1, 2026
India play all five group games at 10 AM local time, which is 1:30 PM IST.
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 7 | Australia | Cape Town | 1:30 PM |
| Oct 10 | Pakistan | Johannesburg | 1:30 PM |
| Oct 14 | Afghanistan | Centurion | 1:30 PM |
| Oct 17 | Qualifier A | Bloemfontein | 1:30 PM |
| Oct 24 | Zimbabwe | Victoria Falls | 1:30 PM |
The Zimbabwe game is Match 33 and the first fixture at the new Mosi-oa-Tunya Stadium. Zimbabwe return to the World Cup after a 12-year absence.
Insider Read
Newlands sits at sea level. The Wanderers sits at 1,753 metres. In that thin air the ball flies faster off the bat, carries further and reaches the keeper at chest height. The length that beats the edge in Cape Town gets pulled into the stands in Johannesburg, where the side boundaries are only 64 to 65 metres. Bowlers get three days to find a new length.
The body notices before the first ball. Lungs burn in the warm-up, the second run feels heavier, and quicks lose breath midway through a spell. High catches hang and then arrive faster than the eye expects. With a 10 AM start and the new ball seaming, India could be fighting the conditions and Pakistan’s attack in the same hour.
How the 2027 World Cup Format Works
The tournament has three rounds before the knockouts.
| Round | Matches | Dates | How it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Super Series | 3 | Oct 2 to 6 | The three lowest-ranked qualifiers play each other in Windhoek. The winner reaches the group stage. |
| Group Stage | 30 | Oct 7 to 24 | Two groups of six. The top three in each, plus the best fourth-placed team, advance. |
| Super 7 | 21 | Oct 25 to Nov 14 | Single round robin. No points carry over. The top four reach the semi-finals. |
Group A is India, Australia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe and Qualifier A. Group B is New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, England, Bangladesh and Qualifier B. The opening Super Series is new to the World Cup.
Seven teams are pre-seeded into Super 7 slots: India (A1), Australia (A2), Pakistan (A3), England (AB4), New Zealand (B1), South Africa (B2) and Sri Lanka (B3). A non-seeded team that finishes above a seeded side takes its slot. In the semi-finals, first plays fourth and second plays third.
Ten teams qualified directly by the September 30, 2026 cutoff. The last four come from the World Cup Qualifier, played from February 22 to March 23, 2027. The winner goes straight into the group stage, and the next three play the Super Series. West Indies, ranked 10th, and Ireland must go through it.
The ticket ballot is open at tickets.cricketworldcup.com until 23:59 SAST on November 21, 2026. Entry is free and not first-come, first-served. Prices range from about USD 9.50 (R158) to about USD 30 (R514).
“The announcement of the schedule and opening of the ticket ballot are major milestones on the road to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027, bringing fans one step closer to a spectacular celebration of cricket across the three nations.”
“The ICC remains committed to making its World Cup events accessible to as many fans as possible, with affordable ticket prices and options that bring families, young people and local communities closer to the action.”
Jay Shah, ICC Chairman, CWC27 schedule launch in Cape Town, October 1, 2026
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