ICC U-19 World Cup 2018: From format to schedule, all you need to know about upcoming mega event

The ICC U-19 World CUp is upon us. Come 13 January and Pakistan U-19 will take on Afghanistan U-19 to kick off the tournament. While, the final of the tournament will be played on 3 February at Mount Maunganui. The tournament’s warm-up matches are already underway and India, led by Mumbai’s teen sensation Prithvi Shaw, crushed South Africa by 189 runs. Even England, Canada and Australia were off to a winning start in the warm-up matches. Apart from Shaw, the other players who will be attracting people’s attention are Windies’ Kirstan Kallicharan, New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra, England’s Will Jacks, Sri Lanka’s ambidextrous skipper Kamindu Mendis, Afghanistan’s Mujeeb Zadran and Australia’ Jason Sangha. As the ICC U-19 World Cup 2018 nears, here’s a guide to all your questions regarding the tournament: Reigning champions Windies defeated India in the 2016 edition by 5 wickets to clinch the U-19 World Cup Trophy. Which country will host the tournament? New Zealand will be hosting the tournament and the teams will play at seven different venues. They are: Cobham Oval, Whangarei. Lincoln No 3, Lincoln Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown Hagley Oval, Christchurch Mainpower Oval, Rangiora Duration of the tournament 13 January 2018 to 18 February 2018 How many teams will participate?  Sixteen teams will feature in the upcoming tournament. They are Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, England, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Windies, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Afghanistan, Kenya and Papua New Guinea. Ten teams, who were full members of ICC before Afghanistan and Ireland were given Test status, entered the tournament via a direct entry. Namibia were also granted the same because they were the top associate nation. The other five teams qualified by the virtue of winning the different qualifying tournaments The 16 teams have been divided into four groups for the U-19 World Cup:  Group A Kenya, South Africa, New Zealand, Windies Group B Australia, India, Papua New Guinea, Zimbabwe Group C Bangladesh, Canada, England, Namibia Group D Afghanistan, Ireland, Pakistan, Sri Lanka [caption id=“attachment_4295449” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] All 16 captains of the 16 countries that will take part in ICC U-19 World Cup 2018 pose with the trophy in the centre. Image courtesy: Twitter @ICC[/caption] Format of the tournament All the sixteen teams are divided into four groups. Each team will play the other three sides in their group once and will be awarded a certain number of points after every win. However, they can also attain bonus points if they win by a large margin. Though the format becomes slightly complicated after the group phases. The teams holding the first and the second positions (eight teams in total) in their group will qualify for the Super League, the winners of which will win the World Cup, while the third and fourth positions (again eight teams) will advance to the Plate League. It goes without saying that the teams in the Plate League won’t be the competing for the World Cup crown from there on, but they will contend for the Plate Title. The winners of the Plate Title will end up at the ninth position in the eventual standings of the tournament. There will be eight quarter-finals in total (four in Super League, four in Plate League) and the winners of the semi-final will eventually face off each other in the final of both the leagues. The teams which end up on the losing side in the Super League and Plate League quarter-finals will feature in the Super League Playoff and Plate League Playoff semi-finals. The winners of the Super League Playoff semis will compete for the fifth place and the losers will lock horns against each other for the seventh place. On the other hand, the winners of Plate League Playoff semifinals will challenge each other for the 13th place and the losers will pit against each other for the 15th spot. Below are the full squads of all the 16 teams of the tournament:  India: Prithvi Shaw(C), Shubman Gill, Aryan Juyal, Abhishek Sharma, Arshdeep Singh, Harvik Desai, Manjot Kalra, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Pankaj Yadav, Riyan Parag, Ishan Porel, Himanshu Rana, Anukul Roy, Shivam Mavi, Shiva Singh Windies: Emmanuel Stewart(C), Ronaldo Alimohamed, Alick Athanaze, Cephas Cooper, Jarion Hoyte, Kirstan Kallicharan, Kimani Melius, Ashmead Nedd, Kian Pemberton, Raymond Perez, Joshua Persaud, Jeavor Royal, Keagan Simmons, Bhaskar Yadram, Nyeem Young New Zealand: Kaylum Boshier (C), Finn Allen, Jakob Bhula, Max Chu, Katene Clarke, Matthew Fisher, Luke Georgeson, Ben Lockrose, Callum McLachlan, Felix Murray, Dale Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Sandeep Patel, Connor Sullivan, Todd Watson South Africa: Raynard van Tonder(C), Matthew Breetzke, Gerald Coetzee, Jade de Klerk, Jean du Plessis, Fraser Jones, Wandile Makwetu, Akhona Mnyaka,Andile Mokgakane, Kgaudisa Molefe, Jason Niemand, Thando Ntini, Jiveshan Pillay, Hermann Rolfes, Kenan Smith Australia: Jason Sangha(C), Will Sutherland, Xavier Bartlett, Max Bryant, Jack Edwards, Zak Evans, Jarrod Freeman, Ryan Hadley,Baxter J Holt, Nathan McSweeney, Jonathan Merlo, Lloyd Pope, Jason Ralston,Param Uppal, Austin Waugh Zimbabwe: Liam Roche(C), Robert Chimhinya, Jonathan Connolly, Gregory Dollar, Alistair Frost, Taun Harrison, Wesley Madhevere, Tanunurwa Makoni, Donald Mlambo, Dion Myers, Tinashe Nenhunzi, Nkosilatu Nunu, Kieran Robinson, Jayden Schadendorf, Milton Shumba Bangladesh: Saif Hassan(C), Afif Hossain,Aminul Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Mahidul Islam Ankon,Mohammad Naim, Mohammad Rakib, Nayeem Hasan,Pinak Ghosh, Qazi Onik,Robiul Haque,Roni Hossen, Shakil Hossain, Tipu Sultan, Towhid Hridoy, Zakir Hasan England: Harry Brook(C),Ethan Bamber, Liam Banks, Tom Banton,Jack Davies,Adam Finch,Luke Hollman, Will Jacks,Tom Lammonby, Dillon Pennington,Savin Perera,Tom Scriven, Prem Sisodiya, Finlay Trenouth, Roman Walker Ireland: Ian Anders(C), Aaron Cawley, Varun Chopra, Mark Donegan, Jonathan Garth, Jamie Grassi, Reece Kelly, Graham Kennedy, Joshua Little, Sam Murphy, Max Neville, Neil Rock, Harry Tector, Harry Tector, Andrew Vincent Pakistan: Hasan Khan(C), Rohail Nazir, Mohammad Ali Khan, Ali Zaryab, Ammad Alam, Arshad Iqbal, Imran Shah, Mohammad Taha, Muhammad Mohsin Khan, Muhammad Musa, Muhammad Zaid, Munir Riaz, Saad Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Suleman Shafqat Sri Lanka: Kamindu Mendis(C), Krishan Arachchige, Ashen Bandara, Hasitha Boyagoda, Jehan Daniel, Nishan Madushka, Nuwanidu Fernando, Santhush Gunathilaka, Praveen Jayawickrama, Dhananjaya Lakshan, Nipun Malinga, Kalana Perera, Nipun Dananjaya, Thisaru Rashmika, Haren Buddila [caption id=“attachment_4295415” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] The Brand Ambassador of the tournament Corey Anderson poses with the ICC U-19 World Cup Trophy. Image courtesy: Twitter @ICC[/caption] Kenya: Maxwel Ager (C), Sachin Bhudia, Abhishekh Chidambaran, Aveet Desai, Jay Doshi, Aman Gandhi, Ankit Hirani, Jasraj Kundi, Jayant Mepani, Dennis Musyoka, Gerard Mwendwa, Thomas Ochieng, Sukhdeep Singh, Sidhart Vasudev, Rene Were Afghanistan: Naveen-ul-Haq(C), Azmatullah Omarzai, Bahir Shah, Darwish Rasooli, Ibrahim Zadran, Ikram Ali Khil, Mujeeb Zadran, Nisar Wahdat,Qais Ahmad,Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Tariq Stanikzai, Wafadar, Waqarullah Ishaq, Yousuf Zazai, Zahir Khan Namibia: Lohan Louwrens(C), Henry Brink, Petrus Burger, Jan-Izak de Villiers,Shaun Fouche, Jurgen Linde,Nicol Loftie-Eaton,Gerhard Lottering, Dewald Nel,Mauritius Ngupita, Ben Shikongo, Floris Steenkamp, Erich van Mollendorf, Eben van Wyk Canada: Arslan Khan(C), Akash Gill, Tiaan Pretorius, Ashtan Deosammy, Arshdeep Dhaliwal, Faisal Jamkhandi,Rishiv Joshi,Emanuel Khokhar,Kavian Naress, Aran Pathmanathan,Pranav Sharma,Rommel Shahzad,Krishen Samuel,Randhir Sandhu,Kevin Singh Papua New Guinea: Vagi Karaho (C), James Tau, Daure Aiga, Boge Arua, Sinaka Arua, Simon Atai, Eisa Eka, Semo Kamea, Igo Mahuru, Leke Morea, Toa Nou, Nou Rarua, Ovia Sam, Kevau Tau, Heagi Toua Schedule of the tournament:  13 Januar, Saturday, Match 1 Pakistan U-19 vs Afghanistan U-19, Group D Cobham Oval, Whangarei, 03.00 AM IST 13 January, Saturday, Match 2 Zimbabwe U-19 vs Papua New Guinea U-19, Group B Lincoln No 3, Lincoln, 03.00 AM IST 13 January, Saturday, Match 3 Bangladesh U-19 vs Namibia U-19, Group C Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln, 03.00 AM IST 13 January, Saturday, Match 4 New Zealand U-19 vs West Indies U-19, Group A Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 06.30 AM IST 14 January, Sunday, Match 5 Sri Lanka U-19 vs Ireland U-19, Group D Cobham Oval, Whangarei, 03.00 AM IST 14 January, Sunday, Match 6 South Africa U-19 vs Kenya U-19, Group A Lincoln No 3, Lincoln, 03.00 AM IST 14 January, Sunday, Match 7 India U-19 vs Australia U-19, Group B Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 06.30 AM IST 15 January, Monday, Match 8 Bangladesh U-19 vs Canada U-19, Group C Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln 03.00 AM IST 15 January, Monday, Match 9 England U-19 vs Namibia U-19, Group C Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown, 03.00 AM IST 16 January, Tuesday, Match 10 Pakistan U-19 vs Ireland U-19, Group D Cobham Oval, Whangarei, 03.00 AM IST 16 January, Tuesday, Match 11 India U-19 vs Papua New Guinea U-19, Group B Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui 06.30 AM IST 17 January, Wednesday, Match 12 Sri Lanka U-19 vs Afghanistan U-19, Group D Cobham Oval, Whangarei, 03.00 AM IST 17 January, Wednesday, Match 13 Zimbabwe U-19 vs Australia U-19, Group B Lincoln No 3, Lincoln, 03.00 AM IST 17 January, Wednesday, Match 14 New Zealand U-19 vs Kenya U-19, Group A Hagley Oval, Christchurch, 03.00 AM IST 17 January, Wednesday, Match 15 Windies U-19 vs South Africa U-19, Group A Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 06.30 AM IST 18 January, Thursday, Match 16 Namibia U-19 vs Canada U-19, Group C Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln, 3.00 AM IST 18 January, Thursday, Match 17 Bangladesh U-19 vs England U-19, Group C Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown, 03.00 AM IST 19 January, Friday, Match 18 Sri Lanka U-19 vs Pakistan U-19, Group D Cobham Oval, Whangarei, 03.00 AM IST 19 January, Friday, Match 19 Australia U-19 vs Papua New Guinea U-19, Group B Lincoln No 3, Lincoln, 03.00 AM IST 19 January, Friday, Match 20 India U-19 vs Zimbabwe U-19, Group B Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 06.30 AM IST 20 January, Saturday, Match 21 Afghanistan U-19 vs Ireland U-19, Group D Cobham Oval, Whangarei, 03.00 AM IST 20 January, Saturday, Match 22 West Indies U-19 vs Kenya U-19, Group A Lincoln No 3, Lincoln, 03.00 AM IST 20 January, Saturday, Match 23 England U-19 vs Canada U-19, Group C Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown, 3.00 AM IST 20 January, Satuday, Match 24 New Zealand U-19 vs South Africa U-19, Group A Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 06.30 AM IST 22 January, Monday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Quarter-Final 1 (C3 vs B4), Lincoln No 3, Lincoln 22 January, Monday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Quarter-Final 2 (B3 vs C4), Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln 23 January, Tuesday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Quarter-Final 1 (C1 v B2), Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown 23 January, Tuesday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Quarter-Final 3 (D3 v A4), Lincoln No 3, Lincoln 23 January, Tuesday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Quarter-Final 4 (A3 v D4), Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln 24 January, Wednesday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Quarter-Final 2 (D1 v A2), Hagley Oval, Christchurch 25 January, Thursday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Quarter-Final 3 (A1 v D2), Hagley Oval, Christchurch 25 January, Thursday, 03.00 AM IST Plate playoff Semi-Final 1, Mainpower Oval, Rangiora 25 January, Thursday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Playoff Semi-Final 2, Lincoln No 3, Lincoln 25 January, Thursday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Semi-Final 1, Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln 26 January, Friday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Quarter-Final 4, (B1 v C2), Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown 26 January, Friday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Semi-Final 2, Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln 27 January, Saturday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Playoff Semi-Final 1, Hagley Oval, Christchurch 27 January, Saturday, 03.00 AM IST 15th Place Playoff, Mainpower Oval, Rangiora 27 January, Saturday, 03.00 AM IST 13th Place Playoff, Lincoln No 3, Lincoln 28 January, Sunday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Playoff Semi-Final 2, Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown 28 January, Sunday 03.00 AM IST 11th Place Playoff, Mainpower Oval, Rangiora 28 January, Sunday, 03.00 AM IST Plate Final, Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln 29 January, Monday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Semi-Final 1, Hagley Oval, Christchurch 30 January, Tuesday, 03.00 AM IST Super League Semi-Final 2, Hagley Oval, Christchurch 30 January, Tuesday, 03.00 AM IST 7th Place Playoff, Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown 31 January, Wednesday, 03.00 AM IST 5th Place Playoff, Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown 01 February, Thursday, 03.00 AM IST 3rd Place Playoff, Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown 03 February, Saturday, 03.00 AM IST Final, Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui