Courtesy: Google
The 2026-29 edition of the ICC Women's Championship is set to expand from 10 to 11 teams. The four-year long ODI tournament to determine the top five automatic qualifiers to the Women's World Cup 2029, will have Zimbabwe added to the mix for its next edition, to compete with the 10 other full member nations.
When the tournament was first introduced in 2014, it consisted of eight teams namely Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and West Indies. The first two editions saw eight teams playing each other in three-match ODI series (the India vs Pakistan series didn’t get a green signal due to long-standing political tensions), home and away over the course of 2.5 years.
The 2022-25 edition saw 10 teams competing in the ICC Women's Championship including Ireland and Bangladesh, who were added on the basis of their 9th and 10th rankings respectively . For the unversed, there is no automatic qualification based on rankings in the Women’s World Cup.
Talking about the current edition, the top five teams finishers alongside hosts India will qualify for the Women's World Cup 2025. This event will conclude in January 2025.
Zimbabwe are ranked 14th in WODI rankings
The Chevrons, who were awarded the WODI status in 2021, are 14th in the ICC rankings. Unlike their men’s team, they are yet to attain Test status. If the African side managed to qualify for the 2029 event, then it will be their first World Cup across formats.
