MELBOURNE: With women's cricket growing worldwide, 200 days are left until India take on the defending champions Australia in the curtain-raiser of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020 at Sydney Showground Stadium on February 21.
Australia will host two stand-alone T20 World Cups next year - women's (February 21 - March 8) and men's (October 18 - November 5) tournaments - to played across the country.
The finals of both the events will be held at the world's largest cricket stadium - Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), giving the venue an opportunity to set a new world record for the highest attendance at a women's sporting fixture on March 8, 2020, International Women's Day.
Local Organising Committee of the event announced that leaders across Australia have pledged their support as '2020 Champions', each helping to inspire people to take part and continue the positive momentum in the sport for women and girls.
2020 Champions who have pledged their support includes, ICC T20 World Cup-winning captain Alex Blackwell, Australian men's cricket team head coach Justin Langer, T20 World Cup winner and cricket commentator Lisa Sthalekar, and former Australian player and cricket commentator Melanie Jones.
"The fact there are two separate tournaments for women and men means cricket has two bites at the cherry to create a buzz, create heroes and inspire the next generation of players and supporters. With the final of the women's tournament set for International Women's Day at the MCG and the target set at selling out the venue, there's the potential for a history-making occasion right there," Langer said.
ICC T20 World Cup Local Organising Committee CEO, Nick Hockley said the tournament is an opportunity to showcase equality through sport on the global stage.
"We've seen at the recent FIFA Women's World Cup and ICC Cricket World Cup what a powerful and uniting force major sporting events can be and we are humbled to have such inspirational leaders join together to help maximise the positive impact of Australia 2020. We look forward to welcoming our 2020 Champions and the broader community at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in just 200 days' time," Hockley said.