The International Cricket Council on Monday announced a new name and format for its biennial limited-overs tournament, with September's expanded event to be called the ICC Champions Trophy.
Teams from 12 countries will compete for a total of $1.15 million in the tournament, previously called the ICC Knock Out and held twice over the past four years in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and Nairobi, Kenya.
The new format will involve four pools of three teams, rather than the straight knockout basis of its 11-team predecessor. Each side will play two pool games, with the winners of each group advanncing to the semifinals.
The winning team can earn up to dlrs 525,000. The host nation for the tournament and program of matches will be decided by the ICC executive board at its meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, on March 16.
The groups:
Pool 1: Australia, Bangladesh, New Zealand
Pool 2:England, India, Zimbabwe
Pool 3: Kenya, South Africa, West Indies
Pool 4:Netherlands, Pakistan, Sri Lanka (sw) Bureau Report