The ICC (International Cricket Council) has announced expansion of women’s cricket, starting from 2024.

The announcement comes on the International Women’s Day (March 8).

ICC Women’s World Cup in 2029 will see 10 teams competing in 48 matches, which means teams like Bangladesh and Ireland will have a clear shot at the mega event. Although, the 2025 World Cup will have 8 teams (31 matches).

The Women’s T20 World Cup in 2026, 2028 and 2030 will consist 12 teams (33 matches in each tournament). However, 2024 edition will continue with 10 teams in 23 matches.

Meanwhile, a new tournament – ICC Women’s T20 Championship – will be played in 2027 and 2030. Only six teams will fight in 16 matches in the short tournament.

“We have a clear focus and commitment to an ambitious long-term growth plan for the women’s game. We have been building momentum around the women’s game for the last four years investing in global broadcast coverage and marketing to drive fan engagement,” ICC chief executive Manu Sawhney said.

“The results speak for themselves with the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 attracting record numbers, 1.1 billion video views, making it the most watched women’s cricket event of all time and having 86,174 fans attending the final at the MCG, a record attendance for a women’s cricket event.

“This decision to expand our women’s events builds on these foundations and allows us to give more member countries greater opportunities to compete on a global stage. This means that more teams will also get the opportunity to compete in the qualification pathways for the respective ICC events over the coming years. I am sure these initiatives will go a long way in helping us achieve our strategic goal of continuing to build strength an”d depth in the women’s game.”

Last year it was confirmed that cricket will be introduced to Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 with women’s teams.