The International Cricket Council tournament includes a crucial Super 8 stage. This round decides which teams can advance to the semi-finals while competing for the title. Many fans find the group formation process confusing, as it relies heavily on seedings. Here’s a straightforward explanation of how groups and match schedules are set up.
How Super 8 Groups Are Decided
The tournament starts with 20 teams divided into four groups in the initial stage. The top two teams from each group move forward to the Super 8 stage, resulting in a total of eight teams competing.
The setup for the Super 8 groups differs from the group stage positions. Before the tournament began, the ICC pre-seeded eight teams based on their T20I rankings at that time.
Group 1 seedings were:
- X1: India
- X2: Australia
- X3: West Indies
- X4: South Africa
Group 2 seedings were:
- Y1: England
- Y2: New Zealand
- Y3: Pakistan
- Y4: Sri Lanka
Teams that qualify for the tournament will enter their assigned Super 8 groups based on these seedings, which are unaffected by their group stage finishes.
If a non-seeded team qualifies instead of a pre-seeded team, they will take that team’s seeding spot. For instance, if Zimbabwe qualifies instead of Australia, they will take the X2 position. This structure aims to simplify the tournament’s logistics.
Super 8 Schedule and Format Explained
The Super 8 stage will run from February 21 to March 1. Matches will take place across various venues in India and Sri Lanka, including Narendra Modi Stadium, Wankhede Stadium, M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, Arun Jaitley Stadium, Eden Gardens, R. Premadasa Stadium, and Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.
Each group will consist of four teams, and each team must play three matches against all other teams in their group. This ensures fair qualification chances for all teams.
The match schedule is based on the established seedings. Here are the scheduled matchups:
| Match | Fixture | Date | Time (IST) | Venue |
| Match 1 | Y2 vs Y3 | Feb 21 | 7:00 PM IST | R. Premadasa Stadium |
| Match 2 | Y1 vs Y4 | Feb 22 | 3:00 PM IST | Pallekele International Cricket Stadium |
| Match 3 | X1 vs X4 | Feb 22 | 7:00 PM IST | Narendra Modi Stadium |
| Match 4 | X2 vs X3 | Feb 23 | 7:00 PM IST | Wankhede Stadium |
| Match 5 | Y1 vs Y3 | Feb 24 | 7:00 PM IST | Pallekele International Cricket Stadium |
| Match 6 | Y2 vs Y4 | Feb 25 | 7:00 PM IST | R. Premadasa Stadium |
| Match 7 | X3 vs X4 | Feb 26 | 3:00 PM IST | Narendra Modi Stadium |
| Match 8 | X1 vs X2 | Feb 26 | 7:00 PM IST | M. A. Chidambaram Stadium |
| Match 9 | Y1 vs Y2 | Feb 27 | 7:00 PM IST | R. Premadasa Stadium |
| Match 10 | Y3 vs Y4 | Feb 28 | 7:00 PM IST | Pallekele International Cricket Stadium |
| Match 11 | X2 vs X4 | Mar 1 | 3:00 PM IST | Arun Jaitley Stadium |
| Match 12 | X2 vs X3 | Mar 1 | 7:00 PM IST | Eden Gardens |
The Super 8 stage is vital as teams must strive for victories in most matches. A single loss can complicate qualification. All teams aim to win all three matches to secure their spot in the semi-finals.
