There was so much debate and discussion on the pitch that was selected for the ODI World Cup 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, where Australia ended hosts India's unbeaten 10-match winning streak to lift the precious trophy for a record-extending sixth time. The International Cricket Council (ICC) revealed their rating for the Ahmedabad pitch and the ones used for the semifinal games.
The Final match was played on a used track. India were folded for 240 runs which was chased down by the Aussies with seven overs to spare, courtesy of Travis Head's marvellous century knock.
Before the big game, Australia captain Pat Cummins had raised a concern over the pitch, which was previously used for the India-Pakistan match on October 14, while his India counterpart Rohit Sharma stayed away from the talk around it.
According to some reports, ICC have rated the Ahmedabad track as "average". The rating was given by ICC match referee Andy Pycroft. The report further added that five of India's 11 games - against South Africa in Kolkata, vs England in Lucknow, vs Pakistan in Ahmedabad and vs Australia in Chennai - were played on "averaged-rated" pitches. Among the matches played by India on a pitch that was rated "good" by the ICC, that made by former India bowler Javagal Srinath was the semifinal against New Zealand in Mumbai.
After the Champions Trophy 2025, India's target in ODI cricket will be the ODI World Cup 2027. In such a situation, know what is Team India's ODI schedule till the World Cup 2027. The Men in Blue have to play a total of 9 series in the next ICC ODI tournament, which includes 27 matches.
Apart from this, some more ODI matches can be scheduled near the tournament. So, know what is the ODI schedule of Indian Cricket Team till 2027 and when India will face which team.
The ODI World Cup2027 will be held around October to December. Before this, the Indian team is going to play a lot of matches. India have to play 3-match ODI series against 8 teams. They will play series twice against one country.
India will play New Zealand twice
India will play Australia, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, West Indies and Sri Lanka once each in the upcoming ODI series, while it will play New Zealand twice. Out of the nine series, India will play six series at home, while the rest will be held outside the country.
It will start with the tour of Bangladesh in August, which will be played this year. In October-November 2025, India has to play a three-match ODI series on its tour of Australia. South Africa's team will tour India in November-December.
India will host Sri Lankan team in December 2026
In January 2026, the New Zealand team will play an ODI series in India. After this, India has to play a three-match series against Afghanistan in June. In July 2026, Team India will have to play the same number of ODI series on its tour of England.
The West Indies team is scheduled to tour India in September-October. There will be an ODI series against New Zealand at home in October-November. India will host the Sri Lankan team for an ODI series in December 2026.
If anyone has followed cricket casually over the last decade, they're likely familiar with four key names: former Indian captain Virat Kohli, batting genius Steve Smith, English great Joe Root, and New Zealand's all-time leading run-scorer Kane Williamson.
They together are known as the 'Fab Four' in the modern era of cricket.
Each of them has set new benchmarks for performance, continually pushing one another to enhance their skills. These four batsmen have not only dominated the world of cricket but have also met the expectations of their respective nations.
In this article, we will examine the statistics of the Fab Four across all formats.
Fav Four in cricket: How many runs & centuries have they scored in International Cricket?
Virat Kohli has been the most prolific all-format batter among the fav-four. Kohli, till now in his 550 international games, has scored 27,599 runs with an outstanding average of 52.27. His record of 82 international centuries is only second to Sachin Tendulkar's 100 international centuries.
Joe Root comes in second among them with 20,724 runs so far for England across formats. However, undoubtedly, he has been the best test batter of his generation with 12972 test runs, which sets him as the highest test run scorer for England. Root has also scored 53 international hundreds, of which 36 came in tests only.
Kane Williamson, New Zealand's highest runscorer in international cricket, comes at number three in terms of international runs among the fav four. The former Kiwi leader has scored 19,086 runs so far in his career at an average of 48.56. Kane is now only two short of reaching 50 international hundreds.
Aussie great Steven Smith comes at four with 17,165 runs at an average of 47.81. A late bloomer with the bat, Smith has been outstanding for Australia in tests and ODIs. Along with Root, Smith has also been one of the greatest test batters of this generation.
Here is a comparison of international stats of the fav four.
ICC Anounces Venue and Key Dates for The ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 England
ICC has confirmed seven venues that will host the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 in England next year, with the Lord's Cricket Ground set as the venue for the Final.
The ICChas officially announced that the Final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 will be held at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground on 5th July. The news was shared during a special launch event at Lord’s on 1st May.
Alongside this major reveal, it was confirmed that the matches will also be played at other popular venues across England, including Edgbaston, the Hampshire Bowl, Headingley, Old Trafford, The Oval, and the Bristol County Ground.
The tournament is set to kick off on 12th June and will run for 24 days, featuring a total of 33 matches leading up to the highly anticipated final at Lord’s. The complete match schedule is expected to be released soon.
All the confirmed venues for the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026. Image | ICC
Featuring a record 12 teams, the 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup will be the biggest edition in the tournament’s history. With two more teams than the previous edition, fans can expect fierce competition as the world’s top sides battle it out for the title.
Qualified Teams for the Women's T20 World Cup 2026
England (Host)
Australia
India
New Zealand
Pakistan
South Africa
Sri Lanka
West Indies
Four additional teams will join them through the Qualifier scheduled next year.
The 12 teams will be split into two groups of six for the group stage, followed by the knockout rounds and finals.
Official Statement
ICC Chairman Jay Shah opened up about the tournament, saying, "The confirmation of venues represents a defining moment as we build towards the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026"
"The sell-out Women’s Cricket World Cup final at Lord’s in 2017 remains a landmark in the rise of the women’s game, and I cannot think of a more fitting stage for the final."
"As we turn our focus to preparing for the tournament, we are excited by the promise of thrilling T20 action that will not only captivate fans here but also serve as a showcase for cricket’s return on the Olympic stage in Los Angeles 2028."
Legacy
New Zealand Women's Cricket Team celebrating their 1st title defeating South Africa in the final. Image | ESPNcricinfo
Moving on from the most recent edition, hosted by Bangladesh in the UAE in 2024, saw New Zealandclaim their first-ever title, defeating South Africa by 32 runs in the final.
The 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup will mark the milestone 10th edition of the tournament, which began in 2009.
Indian Men's Cricket team have won a total of 7 ICC trophies so far in their history. Here is a detailed article on India's performance in every ICC tournament.
India's performance in the ICCevents has been mixed in recent years. The title win over South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2024 ended India’s 11-year-long ICC title drought after it last won a global tournament back in 2013 - the ICC Champions Trophy.
Their latest triumph came via Champions Trophy 2025, as they defeated New Zealand by four wickets in Dubai in the final. It was the second consecutive ICC trophy for India under Rohit Sharma's captaincy.
So far, India have collected 7 ICC trophies including two 50 over World Cups, three Champions Trophy, and two T20 World Cups in 2007 and 2024.
Mahendra Singh Dhonihas won 3 ICC events as a captain and Rohit Sharma has 2 in those 7 ICC trophies that India won so far. In this article, SportzPoint will give you details on India's performances in every ICC tournaments so far.
ICC Cricket World Cup (1975 - 2023):
India lost the 2023 ICC World Cup final against Australia.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) started the ODI World Cup back in the year 1975. From then, ICC organized the tournament a total of 13 times. Australia are the most successful in the format as they won 6 titles so far.
India won their first World Cup under Kapil Dev back in 1983 and next under Mahendra Singh Dhoni in 2011. With 2 titles India are the second most successful team alongside West Indies in the 50 overs format after Australia.
Indian Men's Cricket team also lost two ODI World Cup finals, one under Sourav Ganguly in 2003 and another one under Rohit Sharma in 2023. Here is how India performed in the each of the 13 editions of the ICC Cricket World Cup.
India's performance in every ICC Cricket World Cup
Year
Result
1975
6th
1979
7th
1983
Champions
1987
Semi-Final
1992
7th
1996
Semi-Final
1999
6th
2003
Runner's up
2007
9th
2011
Champions
2015
Semi-Final
2019
Semi-Final
2023
Final
ICC Champions Trophy (1998 - 2025):
ICC started a new tournament of the 50 overs format in 1998 called the Champions Trophy. It was also referred as a "Mini World Cup". Till 2006 the Champion's Trophy was held every two years. After that, it continues with a gap of 4 years from 2009.
In 2003, India reached the Finals of the tournament along with Sri Lanka. As the match got washed out and India were declared joint winners.
However, India finally won the ICC Champions Trophy under MS Dhoni in 2013 after defeating England by 5 runs.
In 2025, India defeated New Zealand by four wickets in Dubai to lift the trophy for the third time. It was the second consecutive ICC trophy for India under Rohit Sharma's captaincy.
Let's take a look at India's performance in the tournament so far.
India won their latest ICC T20 World Cup in 2024. Image | ICC
International Cricket Council introduced a new format marquee tournament in 2007 as T20 Cricket started to grow globally. ICC started the T20 World Cup in the year 2007. India defeated their arch-rival Pakistan in the final that year and won the inaugural T20 World Cup under MS Dhoni.
ICC World Test Championshipstarted in the year 2019 as New Zealand won the inaugural WTC after defeating India in the ICC World Test Championship 2021 Final.
India once again qualified for the Test Championship final in 2023 and this time, it was Australia who challenged them. India bottled their chance to win an ICC trophy after waiting for a decade and lost the match by a huge margin of 209 runs.
In 2023-25 World Test Championship, India failed to qualify for the final.
India won their first 50-over ICC title in 12 years as they won the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The Men in Blue won their third ICC Champions Trophy title, and went past Australia’s tally of two. Here are the past winners of the last 10 ICC tournaments.
Indian men's cricket team finally won their first 50-over ICC title in 12 years as they defeated New Zealand in the Champions Trophy 2025 final by four wickets in Dubai. Here are the past winners of the last 10 ICC tournaments.
Eden Gardens, Kolkata hosted the 2016 T20 World Cup on 3rd April between England and West Indies. West Indies defeated their opponent by 4 wickets and won the final with 2 balls remaining. Carols Braithwaite with four sixes in four balls to Ben Stokes became an overnight hero for the West Indies team. Marlon Samuels scored 85* off 66 balls and became the Man of the Match.
The Oval, London hosted one of the biggest cricket rivalries on 18 June 2017. The match was the 2017 Champions Trophy final between India and Pakistan. Pakistan sent the Indian squad back to the pavilion in less than 31 overs and won the final by 180 runs. Fakhar Zaman won the man of the match award.
The night of 14th July 2019 has to be one of the most interesting and different in cricket history. Both England and New Zealand scored the same during their innings and also in the super-over. The result of the match was decided in an interesting method; the team with the superior number of boundaries was the winner. Hence, England won the tournament.
Winning the World Test Championship has to be New Zealand's biggest victory in cricket history. Southampton hosted the final from 18 June to 23rd June 2021. Kane Williamson led the team to victory and the final test match by 8 wickets. With bowling figures of 5/31, 21 & 2/30, Kyle Jamieson was the Man of the match in the final.
Australia once again proved its dominance and worth on the night of the 2021 T20 World Cup final. The entire Australian team contributed their best and clinched the trophy last night to beat New Zealand by 8 wickets. David Warner chose the best platform to prove himself after a humiliating IPL season. Mitchell Marsh scored an unbelievable knock of 77* in 50 balls and won the Man of the Match award.
6. T20 World Cup - England (2022)
England won their third ICC trophy as they clinched the T20 World Cup 2022 title after beating Pakistan in the final by five wickets. Sam Curran was adjudged the player of the tournament for his 13 wickets in the tournament. Curran was also the player of the final as his 3/22 helped England restrict Pakistan to 137 in the first inning. This was England's second T20 World Cup title.
7. World Test Championship - Australia (2023)
India again failed to win any ICC trophy since 2013 as Pat Cummins-led Australia defeated India by 209 runs. Australia scored a massive 469 in the first inning as Steve Smith and Travis Head scored tons for the Aussies. The first-inning score proved to be too much for India as they scored only 296 in the reply and Australia put more pressure with 270 in the second inning.
Despite starts for Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, India failed to get close to the score and eventually suffered the defeat.
With this win, Josh Hazlewood, David Warner, Pat Cummins, Steve Smith and Mitchell Starc became the only players to win all ICC Trophies.
8. ICC World Cup - Australia (2023)
Two-time ODI World Cup winners.
Pat Cummins and Australia's dream run continued as they won the ICC Men's World Cup for a record sixth time in 2023 defeating India, again. In one of the most visited and watched World Cup finals in Ahmedabad, Australia defeated India by six wickets.
Despite a great start with the bat, India lost captain Rohit Sharma and post that kept on losing wickets. They could only score 240 in the first inning and though Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami tried their level best, Travis Head's excellent ton (137) took Australia over the line. Head was player of the match in back-to-back ICC Finals.
India finally broke their jinx of ICC finals after beating South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2024 final in Barbados. They clinched their second T20 World Cup title as Rohit Sharma's men defeated the Proteas team by seven runs in the final.
Virat Kohli (76) and Axar Patel (47) played some solid knocks to take India to the highest total (176) in a T20 World Cup final. Though South Africa were cruising for an easy win, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Arhsdeep Singh managed to pull things back for India with the ball. Virat Kohli was adjudged the player of the final and Jasprit Bumrah was named the Player of the tournament for his 15 wickets in the tournament.
10. Champions Trophy - India (2025)
India made it back-to-back global cricket tournaments with a four-wicket victory over New Zealand in the ICC Champions Trophy final in Dubai.
Chasing 252 against the Blackcaps, India reached home in 49 overs at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The spinners put up a splendid show, helping India restrict the Blakcaps for 251 for 7 after the side latter team won the toss and opted to bat first.
Kuldeep Yadav (2 for 40) and Varun Chakravarthy (2 for 45) picked two wickets apiece while Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami scalped one wicket each. Daryl Mitchell (63) and Michael Bracewell (53) played crucial knocks for the Blackcaps.
In the chase, India got off to a flying start, thanks to Rohit Sharma's dominating 76. Shreyas Iyer (48) and KL Rahul (34 not out) also played crucial knocks as India edged past New Zealand to win the Champions Trophy for the third time.
This was India’s second consecutive ICC title win - it had won the T20 World Cup crown in June last year. India has now won two ODI World Cups, two T20 World Cups and three Champions Trophy titles.
Note: The article was first written by Shreya Ghosh and then got updated by Koushik Biswas.