| Hosts: New Zealand (six venues) Dates: 4 March - 3 April |
| BBC coverage: Test Match Special commentary and live text on selected games on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra & BBC Sounds; video highlights on BBC Sport website & app |
The Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand gets under way on Friday with England looking to defend their title.
The West Indies will play the hosts in the first game of a tournament that was delayed because of the Covid-19 epidemic.
England will play Australia in Hamilton on Saturday.
There will be live commentary of 20 matches on the radio.
Kate Cross, an England fast bowler, and Alex Hartley, a World Cup winner, are part of the Test Match Special commentary team.
The tournament is taking place against the backdrop of a surge in the Omicron variant in New Zealand, so crowds will be very limited.
The top four teams from the group stage will advance to the semi-finals in the 50-over event.
The final will be held at the Hagley Oval.
The total prize fund is $3.5 million. The sum for the champion is double what England received in 2017, but still only a third of what their male counterparts received for winning the men's World Cup in 2019.
Despite being the holders, England is chasing Australia.
They went winless in the multi-format series and were soundly beaten in theAshes.
The squad that won the Lord's final five years ago still has seven players. Sophia Dunkley and Charlie Dean will replace established names like Sarah Taylor and Laura Marsh.
It would be a huge achievement to go back-to-back and retain the trophy, said opening batter Tammy Beaumont, who was leading run-scorer and player of the tournament last time.
The conditions in New Zealand are similar to home, so it is nice to try to go back-to-back.
A lot of people have written us off. You write us off because we are still the holders.
Lisa Keightley is a World Cup winner.
The players and the coaching staff believe they have what it takes to win a World Cup, according to Keightley.
I am happy to be where we are and Australia will be favorites.
That becomes an extra burden. They have played cricket over the past two years. They are favorites. We all know that they are.
Australia is one of the strongest teams in international sport.
The second of the two T20 World Cup victories was in front of 86,174 spectators at the final in Melbourne two years ago.
They were beaten by New Zealand in their last warm-up match and will be aware of what happened in 2017: they were stunned in the semi-finals by India.
It is true that an Indian victory in a global tournament would give a boost to the profile of the women's game in the biggest cricketing nation on the planet.
The batting line-up is filled with talent, while Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami will play in their last World Cup.
South Africa is the second-best team in the world, but they will have to do without their captain, who is injured. In the warm-ups, New Zealand beat Australia but lost to Pakistan, the lowest ranked team in the competition.
One of the stories of the tournament is the captain of Pakistan. She gave birth to her baby daughter six months ago and is now the leader of the team. Pakistan and India are in New Zealand on Sunday.
Pakistan and Bangladesh will be looking to avoid bottom spot in the World Cup.
The team that won the T20 title in 2016 is a shadow of the one that reached the 50-over World Cup final in 2013).
The World Cup in New Zealand has been delayed as the country deals with its biggest spike in Covid cases since the beginning of the Pandemic.
The teams are not living in strict bubble conditions after seven days of hard quark.
If a team has at least nine fit players, matches can take place.
Ashleigh will miss the games against England and Pakistan due to a positive test.
Crowds at matches will be capped at 10% of the venue's total capacity under New Zealand's red restrictions.
Lowering of restrictions during the month-long event will lead to increased crowds for the final stages, according to tournament organizers.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
