The Cricket World Cup is the most far-reaching international event on the sport's calendar, and in 2023 it will take place in India between October 5th and November 19th. Organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC), the event is one of the five most watched competitions in the world and every four years attracts a legion of fans and sports enthusiasts.
The last edition of the tournament took place in 2019, based in England and Wales and was played between the months of May and July. Their final took the England team to the top of the podium, which triumphed against the New Zealand team in the last game of the edition. But before we talk more about the 2023 World Cup, let's briefly understand the sport and its history.
Brief context of cricket
Knowledge about the emergence of cricket is still uncertain, but it is widespread that it derives from ancient European sporting practices that used ball and bat as the main instruments. The sport ended up becoming popular during the 19th century in the British Empire, but cricket only really began to receive memorable prestige in 1961, when the rules of the game were changed.
Ten years later, in 1971, the One-Day International Games (ODI) emerged and just four years later the International Cricket Council (ICC) held the 1st ODI Cricket World Cup, which now takes place every 4 years.
Since then, the sport has continued to evolve and gain popularity. But despite cricket having its own World Cup, both men's and women's, it has not yet gained space as a sport included in the Olympics. Cricket has only been part of the Olympics once in history.
What is the objective in a cricket match?
Despite being very popular among British colonized countries, cricket is not a sport practiced by the masses worldwide. For this reason, the rules that guide the game are unknown to the public, not to mention the fact that it is also a sport with very specific and complex rules. But, generally speaking, cricket works as follows:
Each team enters the field with 11 players equipped with protective accessories that may include helmets, shin guards, gloves, genital protectors, etc. Despite the large space available on the field, which can be circular or oval, the main plays take place in the “pitch” – a strip centered on the field measuring 2 meters long and 3.6 meters wide – and planted at each end of the “pitch”. ” are three wooden stakes, this set of three sticks is called a “whicket”. And what do the players do?
Then, each pitcher has six chances (or one “over”) to throw a ball to knock down the opposing team's stakes and eliminate the batter. Simply put, the objective of the game is to protect the stakes from the opponent's throw, that is, the team that can best defend their stakes wins.
As for duration, a traditional match can last days with time intervals for teams to rest and eat, and in more prominent competitions in the sport's scene, the game lasts just a few hours. This is the case of the World Cup, where each playing time lasts 50 “overs”, that is, 300 pitches, except in game situations where the match is won by batsmen being eliminated.
Because it has a series of rules and numerous very peculiar criteria, cricket is little known and is considered complex and also not very accessible compared to other sports, such as football or volleyball.
2023 Cricket World Cup
Held and administered every 4 years by the International Cricket Council (ICC), the last edition of the event took place in England and Wales in 2019, won by the England team, which took home the unprecedented title of champion of the Cricket World Cup.
This year, the 13th edition of the competition will be entirely hosted in India. The country has already hosted the World Cup three other times, but together with other countries: Pakistan in 1998, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in 1996, and Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in 2011. This will be the first time in history that the country on the Asian continent will host the World Cup in its territory.
The event will take place between October 5th and November 19th and will have the first phase of the tournament organized in a round-robin format, also known as an all-against-all competition. In other words, all teams will face each other once resulting, in this case, in 45 matches in this initial phase, and the four best teams will qualify for the semifinals.
The total of 48 matches, including the initial stage in a round-robin format, two semi-finals and the final, will take place in 10 stadiums spread across Indian territory, with the final scheduled to take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium, in Ahmedabad.
The teams finishing first and fourth will play the first semi-final on November 15 in Mumbai, while the second and third placed teams will face each other in the second semi-final on November 16 in Kolkata.
But after all, how to watch and who will face who in this World Cup? Don't worry that the New Post brought all the necessary details so that you can plan and follow the World Cup games with ease.
Where to watch the games online?
The 45 phase matches round-robin, the two semi-finals and the final will take place in 10 different stadiums in India, but not everyone interested in following the event will be able to attend the stadiums in the Asian country. If this is your case, don't worry!
To the delight of the community of cricket enthusiasts around the world, it is possible to watch matches online through devices such as smartphones or tablets, or computers and notebooks. We will talk about two of them here.
Disney+Hotstar
Hotstar is the result of fifteen months of development and its official launch took place in February 2015, four days before the 2015 Men's Cricket World Cup, the right to Streamg of the event was guaranteed by its owner, Star India, now a subsidiary of The Wall Disney Company India.
Currently, Hotstar aka Disney+Hotstar – read as Disney Plus Hotstar – works on a subscription basis and includes programs from various international channels, such as the famous HBO. But its main attraction is undoubtedly the broadcast of several sports live, cricket being one of them.
So if you're looking for a reliable, high-resolution video-on-demand service to follow the Men's Cricket World Cup 2023, Hotstar will certainly meet your expectations!
Sky Sports
Managed by Jonathan Licht, the Sky Sports is a network of sports channels that has a subscription TV service that dominates the scene in Ireland and the United Kingdom, countries where cricket is very prominent.
The network is so relevant that, from 1991 until today, it has had enormous power in the commercialization of British sport, influencing significant changes in the organizational world of sport. And of course, Sky Sports would not fail to broadcast a major event like the World Cup. of the Men's Cricket World Cup 2023, as this sport has great popular support in the countries where it is available. So, if you want to follow the matches of this exciting World Cup, Sky Sports is a great option.
Did you like this content?
The Men's Cricket World Cup is an exciting competition that brings together fans and supporters from countless nations around the world. With more than a month of competition, the event is a true sporting showcase for anyone interested in the sport. So get ready to follow this great event, and if you don't know the sport yet, there's still time to familiarize yourself, after all there are more than 30 days of pure cricket! We hope to see you soon browsing the articles on NovoPost.
