The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the complete schedule for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027, with South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia jointly hosting the 14-team tournament from October 2 to November 21, 2027.
The tournament will feature 57 matches across 12 venues and introduce a new three-stage format, beginning with a three-team Super Series, followed by the Group Stage and the new Super 7 phase before the semi-finals and final.
For Indian cricket fans, however, one date immediately stands out: October 7, 2027.
India will face defending champions Australia in Cape Town in the opening match of the Group Stage, setting up an early rematch of the 2023 Cricket World Cup Final. Just three days later, India will meet arch-rivals Pakistan in Johannesburg on October 10.
India vs Australia, Then India vs Pakistan
India’s Group Stage campaign begins against Australia in Cape Town on October 7, followed by the much-anticipated India-Pakistan clash in Johannesburg on October 10.
India will then face Afghanistan in Tshwane on October 14, before meeting Qualifier A in Bloemfontein on October 17.
India’s final Group Stage fixture will be against co-hosts Zimbabwe on October 24 at the new Mosi-oa-Tunya Stadium in Victoria Falls. The match will be the final fixture of the Group Stage and the first Cricket World Cup match at the new Victoria Falls venue.
ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027: India Schedule Ready Reckoner
| Date | India’s Group Stage Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| October 7 | 🇮🇳 India vs Australia 🇦🇺 | Cape Town |
| October 10 | 🇮🇳 India vs Pakistan 🇵🇰 | Johannesburg |
| October 14 | 🇮🇳 India vs Afghanistan 🇦🇫 | Tshwane |
| October 17 | 🇮🇳 India vs Qualifier A | Bloemfontein |
| October 24 | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe vs India 🇮🇳 | Victoria Falls |
The ICC has also pre-seeded India in the A1 position for the Super 7 stage. The following fixtures therefore represent the matches allocated to the A1 position, rather than guaranteed India fixtures regardless of qualification.
India’s Potential Super 7 Fixtures
| Date | Fixture if India retains A1 position | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| October 28 | 🇮🇳 India vs Australia 🇦🇺 | Victoria Falls |
| October 31 | 🇿🇦 South Africa vs India 🇮🇳 | Johannesburg |
| November 4 | 🇮🇳 India vs New Zealand 🇳🇿 | Paarl |
| November 7 | 🇮🇳 India vs Pakistan 🇵🇰 | Cape Town |
| November 11 | 🇮🇳 India vs England 🏴 | Gqeberha |
| November 14 | 🇮🇳 India vs Sri Lanka 🇱🇰 | Durban |
These Super 7 fixtures are based on the ICC’s current pre-seeded positions. India is designated A1. If a non-seeded team qualifies for the Super 7 while displacing a pre-seeded team, it assumes that team’s designated position and corresponding fixtures.
A New Challenge: The Super 7
The ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027 introduces a new Super 7 stage as the third competition round before the semi-finals and final.
The Group Stage will feature 12 teams divided into two groups of six. Each team will play every other team in its group once, producing 30 Group Stage matches.
The top three teams from each group, along with the better-performing fourth-placed team across the two groups, will advance to the Super 7.
The Super 7 will run from October 25 to November 14, with seven teams playing a single round-robin competition. Each team will play six matches, producing 21 matches in total.
Importantly, no points will be carried forward from the Group Stage, meaning the seven teams begin the Super 7 with a fresh standings table.
To provide greater certainty for fans and teams, the ICC has pre-seeded several teams into designated Super 7 positions:
A1 – India
A2 – Australia
A3 – Pakistan
AB4 – England
B1 – New Zealand
B2 – South Africa
B3 – Sri Lanka
If a non-seeded team qualifies for the Super 7 while a pre-seeded team does not, the qualifying team assumes the position allocated to the displaced team.
The ICC gives Bangladesh replacing Sri Lanka in the B3 position as an example. In that scenario, Bangladesh would take Sri Lanka’s scheduled Super 7 fixtures.
The Super 7 schedule begins on October 25, with Australia’s A2 position scheduled to face Sri Lanka’s B3 position in Johannesburg. The fixture would change according to the eventual teams occupying those seeded positions.
The Road to Johannesburg
Once the Super 7 phase concludes on November 14, the top four teams will advance to the semi-finals.
The team finishing first in the Super 7 standings will face the fourth-placed team, while the second- and third-placed teams will meet in the other semi-final.
The first semi-final is scheduled for November 17 in Cape Town, followed by the second semi-final on November 18 in Tshwane. Both semi-finals have reserve days.
The tournament will culminate at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on November 21, when the 2027 World Cup champions will be crowned. A reserve day has been scheduled for November 22 if required.
Three Nations, 12 Venues and Seven Weeks of Cricket
The 2027 Cricket World Cup will spread across 12 venues in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
The Namibia Cricket Ground in Windhoek will host all three Super Series matches as well as three Group Stage matches.
Zimbabwe will stage matches in Victoria Falls, Harare and Bulawayo, while South Africa’s venues include Cape Town, Paarl, Johannesburg, Tshwane, Bloemfontein, Durban, KuGompo City and Gqeberha.
The tournament officially gets underway on October 2, 2027, in Windhoek, with a three-team Super Series involving the second-, third- and fourth-placed finishers from the 2027 Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
The three Super Series matches will be played on October 2, 4 and 6, with the team finishing top claiming the final available Group Stage place.
The Group Stage then begins on October 7, with India facing Australia in Cape Town.
Other early fixtures include Pakistan vs Afghanistan and England vs Bangladesh on October 8, followed by Zimbabwe vs Qualifier A and South Africa vs New Zealand on October 9. India then faces Pakistan in Johannesburg on October 10.
Among the other headline fixtures during the Group Stage are South Africa vs England on October 16, Australia vs Afghanistan on October 18, Australia vs Pakistan on October 22 and England vs New Zealand on October 23.
The Group Stage concludes on October 24, with Zimbabwe taking on India in Victoria Falls.
Tickets Open Another Door for Fans
Alongside the schedule announcement, the ICC has opened its ticket ballot, giving fans around the world an opportunity to register for tickets to the tournament.
According to the ICC, ticket prices range from USD $9.62 (R158) for entry-level tickets to USD $31.31 (R514) for the highest-tier matches. Family bundles, student and pensioner pricing, early-bird local allocations, and community club and school group pricing are also part of the ticket offering.
ICC Chairman Jay Shah described the schedule announcement and opening of the ticket ballot as major milestones on the road to the 2027 World Cup, while highlighting the opportunity for fans to experience cricket across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
The ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027 will therefore offer a distinctly different tournament structure, bringing 14 teams, 57 matches, three competition stages, 12 venues and three host nations together before the semi-finals and final.
For India, the journey begins on October 7, 2027, in Cape Town against Australia — a rematch of the 2023 World Cup Final, but this time as the opening Group Stage fixture of the 2027 tournament.
From there, the road runs through Johannesburg, Tshwane, Bloemfontein and Victoria Falls, before potentially continuing into the Super 7 and the knockout stages.
