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Only a little over six months after cricket fans were treated to the 50-over World Cup in India, another global showpiece is upon us: The T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA.
West Indies and USA to the fore
For the first time in history, a cricket World Cup will be held on American soil, after America and West Indies' joint bid to host the event was greenlit by the International Cricket Council in late 2021.
Of the 55 matches comprising the tournament, 16 will be hosted in the USA, while the rest will take place in the West Indies.
Three American venues will be used throughout the tournament in three different states - Central Broward Park in Lauderhill, Florida; the Nassau County Stadium on Long Island, New York; and Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
The six West Indian venues hosting matches are Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.
The action begins on Sunday, 2 June, when the United States host Canada in Dallas and concludes with the final on 29 June at the Kensington Oval in Barbados. Both semi-finals will also take place in the West Indies, with Trinidad and Tobago hosting the first and Guyana the second.
The Proteas' opening match takes place on Monday, 3 June, at 16:30 (SA time) when they face Sri Lanka at the Nassau County Stadium in New York.
Defending champions England begin the defence of their trophy on Tuesday, 4 June, against neighbours Scotland.
Format: Round-Robins and Playoffs explained
There are 20 teams participating in the tournament, divided into four groups of five for the initial round-robin format.
Group A - India, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, USA
Group B - England, Australia, Namibia, Scotland, Oman
Group C - New Zealand, West Indies, Afghanistan, Uganda, Papua New Guinea
Group D - South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Nepal
Each team will play the other teams in their group once, with the top two teams in each group moving on to the Super 8s. Sides earn two points for a win, one for a no result and none for a defeat.
The Super 8s will also be divided into two groups of four, based on pre-tournament seeding, and again each team plays the others in their group once, with the top two reaching the semi-finals.
In the semi-finals, the winner of Group 1 plays the runner-up in Group 2, and vice versa, to determine the two finalists.
What's in store for the Proteas?
The Proteas are heading into this year's World Cup having just been thrashed 3-0 by the West Indies in a T20 series held in the host nation.
However, of the 14 players that took to the field in that series, only six formed part of South Africa's World Cup squad, so the team is sure to be a very different prospect when all of their first-choice players return.
Furthermore, they have also been drawn in a favourable group and face very winnable matches against the likes of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands and Nepal.
The Proteas will definitely fancy their chances of making the Super 8s from there, and will back themselves to be able to compete at the business end of the tournament.
Head coach Rob Walter has named a formidable squad who will no doubt be eager to break the Proteas long-standing hoodoo at Cricket World Cups, which has seen them come desperately close to glory on several occasions only to falter at crucial moments.
"We have seen some incredible performances from our players in 2024 and that made my job very tough indeed," Walter said when naming the squad.
"I am nonetheless proud and confident that we have named the strongest possible squad that no doubt has every chance of success in the West Indies and USA."
South Africa squad – ICC Men's T20 World Cup West Indies and USA 2024
Aiden Markram (captain), Ottniel Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi and Tristan Stubbs.
Proteas round-robin fixtures
Monday, 3 June: Sri Lanka v South Africa, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
Saturday, 8 June: Netherlands v South Africa, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
Monday, 10 June: Bangladesh, South Africa, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
Friday, 14 June: Nepal v South Africa, Arnos Vale Ground, Kingstown, St Vincent
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