2023 Cricket World Cup Qualifier
 Official tournament logo
| |
| Dates | 18 June 2023 – 9 July 2023 |
|---|---|
| Administrator(s) | International Cricket Council |
| Cricket format | One Day International |
| Tournament format(s) | Group round-robin and play-offs |
| Host(s) | Zimbabwe |
| Champions | Sri Lanka (2nd title) |
| Runners-up | Netherlands |
| Participants | 10 |
| Matches | 34 |
| Player of the series | Sean Williams |
| Most runs | Sean Williams (600) |
| Most wickets | Wanindu Hasaranga (22) |
| Official website | International Cricket Council |
The 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier was the 12th edition of the Cricket World Cup Qualifier, which took place in June and July 2023 in Zimbabwe. It was the culmination of the 2023 Cricket World Cup qualification process and decided the final two participants for the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
In July 2020, Zimbabwe announced their intention to host the qualifier. They had hosted the previous qualification tournament in March 2018. In December 2020, Zimbabwe were confirmed as the tournament hosts.
A fire occurred at the Harare Sports Club on 20 June 2023 behind the southwest grandstand, but no damage took place, and this did not affect the scheduling. The two finalists, Sri Lanka and the Netherlands, claimed the last two places at the 2023 Cricket World Cup. Sri Lanka won the tournament, beating the Netherlands by 128 runs in a one-sided final.
Teams and qualification
The tournament featured ten teams; the bottom five teams from the 2020–23 World Cup Super League, the top three teams from the 2019–23 Cricket World Cup League 2, and the top two teams from the 2023 Cricket World Cup Qualifier Play-off.
All matches in the qualifier tournament were One Day International (ODI) status. The International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed that DRS would be used in the tournament, but only for matches in the Super Six stage and onwards. This was the first time the system was used in the Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament.
| Means of qualification | Date | Venue | Berths | Qualified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super League (Bottom 5) | 30 July 2020 – 14 May 2023 | Various | 5 |
Ireland Netherlands Sri Lanka West Indies Zimbabwe |
| League 2 (Top 3) | 14 August 2019 – 16 March 2023 | Various | 3 |
Nepal Oman Scotland |
| Qualifier Play-off (Top 2) | 26 March – 5 April 2023 | Namibia | 2 |
United Arab Emirates United States |
| Total | 10 | |||
Implications for future competition
The top two sides from this qualifier will be awarded a spot in the 2023 Cricket World Cup. Originally, it was intended that the top-ranked team in the CWC League 2 (Scotland) could be promoted to the next Super League at the expense of the 13th ranked Super League team (Netherlands); but only if the League 2 winner finished as the higher of the two in this tournament. The team ranked lower would then have played in the next edition of League 2. However, in November 2021, the ICC announced that there would not be a second edition of the Super League.
Venues
| Harare | Bulawayo | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Harare Sports Club | Takashinga Cricket Club | Queens Sports Club | Bulawayo Athletic Club |
| Capacity: 10,000 | Capacity: – | Capacity: 13,000 | Capacity: 12,000 |
Squads
The following squads were named ahead of the tournament:
On June 8, Gudakesh Motie was ruled out of the tournament due to a lower back injury and was replaced in West Indies' squad by Johnson Charles. Sri Lanka added Sahan Arachchige, Dilshan Madushanka and Dunith Wellalage as standby players to their squad during the group stage of the tournament. Before the Super Six stage of the tournament, Nyasha Mayavo was added to Zimbabwe's squad to replace the injured Clive Madande. Yannic Cariah was also ruled out of the tournament after the group stages, and Kevin Sinclair replaced in West Indies' squad. Dilshan Madushanka was later added to Sri Lanka's main squad after an injury ruled out Dushmantha Chameera. Lahiru Kumara too was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament during the Super Six stage, and Sahan Arachchige was added to Sri Lanka's main squad to replace him.
Warm-up matches
Ten non-ODI warm-up matches were played on 13 June and 15 June 2023.
|
Nepal
275 (49.5 overs) |
v
|
United Arab Emirates
276/7 (49.5 overs) |
- Nepal won the toss and elected to bat.
|
Netherlands
214 (45.3 overs) |
v
|
Sri Lanka
215/7 (37.1 overs) |
- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
|
United States
312/6 (50 overs) |
v
|
Ireland
315/5 (45.1 overs) |
- Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
|
West Indies
374/9 (50 overs) |
v
|
United Arab Emirates
260/9 (50 overs) |
- West Indies won the toss and elected to bat.
|
Sri Lanka
392/4 (50 overs) |
v
|
United States
194 (33.2 overs) |
- United States won the toss and elected to field.
Group stage
The draw for the group stage was announced on 23 May 2023, with Group A was played in Harare and Group B in Bulawayo. The top three teams in each group advanced to the Super Six.
Group A
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zimbabwe | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2.241 | Advanced to the Super Six |
| 2 | Netherlands | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0.669 | |
| 3 | West Indies | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0.525 | |
| 4 | Nepal | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | −1.171 | Advanced to the 7th–10th Play-offs |
| 5 | United States | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | −2.164 |
Fixtures
|
Nepal
290/8 (50 overs) |
v
|
Zimbabwe
291/2 (44.1 overs) |
- Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field.
- Joylord Gumbie (Zim) made his ODI debut.
|
West Indies
297 (49.3 overs) |
v
|
United States
258/7 (50 overs) |
- United States won the toss and elected to field.
- This was the first ODI match to be played at this venue.
- Gajanand Singh (USA) scored his first century in ODIs.
|
Netherlands
315/6 (50 overs) |
v
|
Zimbabwe
319/4 (40.5 overs) |
- Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field.
- Sikandar Raza scored the fastest century for Zimbabwe in ODIs in terms of balls faced (54).
|
United States
207 (49 overs) |
v
|
Nepal
211/4 (43 overs) |
- Nepal won the toss and elected to field.
- Shayan Jahangir (USA) scored his first century in ODIs.
|
United States
211/8 (50 overs) |
v
|
Netherlands
214/5 (43.2 overs) |
- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Scott Edwards and Wesley Barresi (Ned) both passed 1,000 runs in ODIs.
|
Zimbabwe
268 (49.5 overs) |
v
|
West Indies
233 (44.4 overs) |
- West Indies won the toss and elected to field.
|
Nepal
167 (44.3 overs) |
v
|
Netherlands
168/3 (27.1 overs) |
- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Netherlands, West Indies, and Zimbabwe qualified for the Super Six stage as a result of this match.
|
Zimbabwe
408/6 (50 overs) |
v
|
United States
104 (25.1 overs) |
- United States won the toss and elected to field.
- This was Zimbabwe's first score of 400+ in ODIs.
- This was Zimbabwe's highest margin of victory and the overall second-highest margin of victory in ODI cricket.
|
West Indies
374/6 (50 overs) |
v
|
Netherlands
374/9 (50 overs) |
- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Super Over: Netherlands 30/0, West Indies 8/2.
- This was the highest ODI score for Netherlands and their first win against West Indies in ODIs.
- 30 runs scored by Netherlands' Logan Van Beek is the most runs scored by a team in a Super Over in international cricket.
- This was the highest-scoring tie in ODIs.
Group B
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sri Lanka | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 3.047 | Advanced to the Super Six |
| 2 | Scotland | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0.540 | |
| 3 | Oman | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −1.221 | |
| 4 | Ireland | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | −0.061 | Advanced to the 7th–10th Play-offs |
| 5 | United Arab Emirates | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | −2.249 |
Fixtures
|
Sri Lanka
355/6 (50 overs) |
v
|
United Arab Emirates
180 (39 overs) |
- United Arab Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
- Wanindu Hasaranga (SL) took his first five-wicket haul and his 50th wicket in ODIs.
|
Ireland
281/7 (50 overs) |
v
|
Oman
285/5 (48.1 overs) |
- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
- Ben White (Ire) made his ODI debut.
- This was Oman's first victory over a full member in ODIs.
|
Ireland
286/8 (50 overs) |
v
|
Scotland
289/9 (50 overs) |
- Scotland won the toss and elected to field.
- Curtis Campher (Ire) scored his first century in ODIs.
- Brandon McMullen took his first five-wicket haul in ODIs.
- George Dockrell (Ire) took his 100th wicket in ODIs.
|
Oman
98 (30.2 overs) |
v
|
Sri Lanka
100/0 (15 overs) |
|
Dimuth Karunaratne 61* (51)
|
- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
|
Scotland
282/8 (50 overs) |
v
|
United Arab Emirates
171 (35.3 overs) |
- United Arab Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
|
Sri Lanka
325 (49.5 overs) |
v
|
Ireland
192 (31 overs) |
- Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
- Dimuth Karunaratne (SL) scored his first century in ODIs.
- Sri Lanka, Scotland, and Oman qualified for the Super Six stage as a result of this match.
- Wanindu Hasaranga became the second bowler to take three consecutive five-wicket hauls in ODIs.
|
Scotland
320 (50 overs) |
v
|
Oman
244/9 (50 overs) |
- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
- Brandon McMullen (Sco) scored his first century in ODIs.
|
Ireland
349/4 (50 overs) |
v
|
United Arab Emirates
211 (39 overs) |
- United Arab Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
Play-offs
Bracket
| Play-off semi-finals | 7th place play-off | ||||||||
| A5 | United States | 196 (42.4) | |||||||
| B4 | Ireland | 197/4 (34.2) | |||||||
| A4 | Nepal | 268/9 (50) | |||||||
| B4 | Ireland | 269/8 (49.2) | |||||||
| B5 | United Arab Emirates | 181 (46.5) | |||||||
| A4 | Nepal | 185/7 (43.2) | 9th place play-off | ||||||
| B5 | United Arab Emirates | 308/4 (50) | |||||||
| A5 | United States | 307/9 (50) | |||||||
Play-off semi-finals
|
United States
196 (42.4 overs) |
v
|
Ireland
197/4 (34.2 overs) |
- Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
|
United Arab Emirates
181 (46.5 overs) |
v
|
Nepal
185/7 (43.2 overs) |
- Nepal won the toss and elected to field.
7th place play-off
9th place play-off
|
United Arab Emirates
308/4 (50 overs) |
v
|
United States
307/9 (50 overs) |
- United Arab Emirates won the toss and elected to bat.
- Asif Khan (UAE) made the highest individual score in ODIs for UAE.
Super Six
Teams that advance to the Super Six played three further matches against the qualifiers from the other group, with the two results against teams from their own group carrying forward from the group stage. Teams also carried forward their seeding positions from the first stage to determine the fixtures for the Super Six.
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sri Lanka | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1.600 | Advanced to the Final and qualified for the 2023 Cricket World Cup |
| 2 | Netherlands | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0.160 | |
| 3 | Scotland | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0.102 | |
| 4 | Zimbabwe (H) | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | −0.099 | |
| 5 | West Indies | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | −0.204 | |
| 6 | Oman | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.895 |
(H) Host
Fixtures
|
Zimbabwe
332/7 (50 overs) |
v
|
Oman
318/9 (50 overs) |
- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
- This was Oman's highest total in ODIs.
|
Sri Lanka
213 (47.4 overs) |
v
|
Netherlands
192 (40 overs) |
- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat.
- Oman were eliminated as a result of this match.
|
West Indies
181 (43.5 overs) |
v
|
Scotland
185/3 (43.3 overs) |
- Scotland won the toss and elected to field.
- West Indies were eliminated as a result of this match.
- This was the first time West Indies have not qualified for the World Cup.
|
Zimbabwe
165 (32.2 overs) |
v
|
Sri Lanka
169/1 (33.1 overs) |
- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
- Sri Lanka qualified for the World Cup as a result of this match.
|
Netherlands
362/7 (48 overs) |
v
|
Oman
246/6 (44 overs) |
- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
- The match was reduced to 48 overs per side due to rain.
- Oman were set a revised target of 364 runs from 48 overs due to rain.
- Bad light prevented any further play.
- Vikramjit Singh (Ned) and Ayaan Khan (Oma) both scored their first centuries in ODIs.
|
Scotland
234/8 (50 overs) |
v
|
Zimbabwe
203 (41.1 overs) |
- Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field.
- Zimbabwe were eliminated as a result of this match.
|
Scotland
277/9 (50 overs) |
v
|
Netherlands
278/6 (42.5 overs) |
- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Netherlands qualified for the World Cup as a result of this match.
- Scotland were eliminated as a result of this match.
- Bas de Leede took his first five-wicket haul and scored his first century in ODI cricket. He became the fourth player to score a century and take a five-wicket haul in the same men's ODI.
|
West Indies
243 (48.1 overs) |
v
|
Sri Lanka
244/2 (44.2 overs) |
- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
- Sahan Arachchige (SL) made his ODI debut.
Final
|
Sri Lanka
233 (47.5 overs) |
v
|
Netherlands
105 (23.3 overs) |
- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Noah Croes (Ned) made his ODI debut.
Final standings
| Position | Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Sri Lanka | Qualified for the 2023 Cricket World Cup |
| 2nd | Netherlands | |
| 3rd | Scotland | |
| 4th | Zimbabwe | |
| 5th | West Indies | |
| 6th | Oman | |
| 7th | Ireland | |
| 8th | Nepal | |
| 9th | United Arab Emirates | |
| 10th | United States |
Team of the tournament
The ICC named the following players in the team of the tournament:
- Pathum Nissanka
- Vikramjit Singh
- Brandon McMullen
- Sean Williams
- Bas de Leede
- Sikandar Raza
- Scott Edwards (c, wk)
- Wanindu Hasaranga
- Maheesh Theekshana
- Chris Sole
- Richard Ngarava