The 100-day count-down for ICC T20 World Cup has started in Sri Lanka today with more than 350 school children from Kandy district forming a giant ‘100’ at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.
At a special event held to commemorate the day, the International Cricket Council, together with Sri Lanka Cricket, donated 100 cricket bats amongst the girls and boys who participated in competitive cricket in Kandy district. Cricket’s shortest version returns after 2 years for first time in Asia. With T20 World Cup fast approaching, the expectations of Indian fans will rise up once again.
The Twenty20 World Cup will be staged from September 18 to October 7 in Colombo, Hambantota and Pallekele, with the women`s group stages in Galle. The ICC also announced the launch of more tickets for all matches of the Twenty20 World Cup from June 12 onwards. T20 World Cup schedule has been declared by ICC which will host 27 matches.
ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat expressed his thoughts that it is the first ICC World Twenty20 tournament in Asia. This year’s event promises to be even more explosive as player skills in the T20 format have expanded and cricket fans from around the world are dashing to be in Sri Lanka. Upali Dharmadasa, President of Sri Lanka Cricket conveyed that ICC World Twenty20 Sri Lanka 2012 will be a sporting spectacle not to be missed by any fan.
ICC World Twenty20: Count down begins, 100 days to go
The ticket prices will start from USD 0.25 for the single group games and the final will be priced between USD 2.50 and USD 45. The Women’s Twenty20 World Cup will be free of charge for spectators in the group stages, which will be played in Galle. The semi-finals and final will be played on the same day on the same ground as the men’s semi-finals and final and will be covered by the same ticket.
The International Cricket Council has chosen Sri Lanka’s star pacer Lasith Malinga as the official event ambassador for the World Twenty20 Championships to be held in the island nation from September 18 to October 7. ICC CEO Haroon Lorgat said Malling’s popularity transcends Sri Lanka and he is ideal choice for the role. Malinga will be the face of the event’s advertising campaign in the host nation and will promote it globally as well.
The first match is going to be played between Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka on September 18 as the inaugural match of the cup. The 20 day long tournament will conclude with the final match played at the Premdasa Stadium on October 7. Despite the T20 fever of IPL donning the cricket World right now, T20 World Cup is expected to throw a lot of surprises for audiences.
Tags: Cricket, ICC, ICC World Twenty20, International Cricket Council, Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Cricket, T20 World Cup
