Thursday Oct 02, 2025
Thursday Oct 02, 2025
Friday, 26 September 2025 00:02 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The Indoor Cricket World Cup trophy unveiled at the media conference
The 12th edition of the Indoor Cricket World Cup is set to take place starting today, 26 September, to 4 October, marking a grand return to Sri Lanka after 21 years.
The tournament will be held at two premier indoor cricket venues: Austasia Sports Complex and the newly constructed U Pro Arena in Thalawathugoda, Colombo.
This prestigious global event is expected to attract over 1,000 players, officials, and supporters from across the world, and will receive significant international media coverage in participating nations.
The opening ceremony is scheduled for today at Cinnamon Grand Hotel at 9 a.m. From tomorrow, 27 September, the first round matches will take place, with the semi-finals scheduled for 3 October and finals 4 October. The closing ceremony and awards will take place at Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel on 4 October from 7 p.m. onwards.
The competition will be held under the following four categories: Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Under-22 – Boys and Under-22 – Girls.
A total of 31 teams from 9 countries will compete in this year’s event: Australia – 4 teams, England – 4, India – 3, New Zealand – 4, Singapore – 2, South Africa – 3, Sri Lanka – 6 (Sri Lanka has a Development team for both Men’s Open Under-22 – Boys and Men’s Open), UAE – 4 and USA – 1.
The Indoor Cricket World Cup 2025 is not just a sporting spectacle but also a major sports tourism opportunity for Sri Lanka. The event is officially endorsed by the Tourism Ministry, reflecting the country’s growing stature in the global sports tourism arena.
Over the past year, Sri Lanka has actively promoted international indoor cricket through events such as the England Asia Cup and the Masters World Series, hosted at the upgraded U Pro and Austasia venues.
The inaugural Indoor Cricket World Cup was held in 1995 in Birmingham, England, with Australia emerging as a dominant force in both Men’s and Women’s divisions ever since. Australia has won all previous World Cups in both categories, New Zealand were Men’s runners-up 8 times, South Africa twice, and Sri Lanka once. South Africa has been Women’s runners-up 7 times, and New Zealand 3 times.
The event sponsors and partners are:
