WITH INDIA winning the Compaq cup, now they are all set to fight with seven other teams for the ICC Champions trophy 2009, which will start from September 22, in South Africa. The Champions trophy is also known as the Mini World Cup and will be a real test for all the top eight cricket playing nations. The eight teams are divided into two groups, A and B. A total of 15 matches will be played for the ICC Champions Trophy this year.
Group A - India, Pakistan, Australia and West Indies
Group B - Sri Lanka, South Africa, New Zealand and England.
The top two teams from both the groups will reach the Semi Finals.
The host South Africa will play Sri Lanka in the opening match of the ICC Champions Trophy 2009 on September 22. The finals will be played on October 5.
Schedule and fixture of ICC Champions Trophy 2009:
Sept 22:
(D/N): South Africa v Sri Lanka, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 14:30 IST
Sept 23: (D/N) Pakistan v West Indies The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 14:30 IST
Sept 24: (D/N) South Africa v New Zealand, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 09:30 IST
Sept 25: (D/N) England v Sri Lanka, The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 14:30 IST
Sept 26: Australia v West Indies,The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 09:30 IST
Sept 26: (D/N) India v Pakistan, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 14:30 IST
Sept 27: New Zealand v Sri Lanka, The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 09:30 IST
Sept 27: (D/N) South Africa v England, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 14:30 IST
Sept 28: (D/N) India v Australia, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 14:30 IST
Sept 29: (D/N) England v New Zealand, The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 14:30 IST
Sept 30: Pakistan v Australia, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 09:30 IST
Sept 30: (D/N) India v West Indies, The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 14:30 IST
Oct 02: (D/N) 1st Semi-Final - A1 v B2, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 14:30 IST
Oct 03: (D/N): 2nd Semi-Final - B1 v A2, The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, 14:30 IST
Oct 05: (D/N) Final, SuperSport Park, Centurion, 14:30 IST
The sides to have won the Champions trophy are South Africa (in Bangladesh, 1998), New Zealand (Kenya, 2000), India and Sri Lanka (joint winners after the final was washed out in Sri Lanka, 2002), the West Indies (England, 2004) and Australia (India, 2006).