International Cricket

ICC U19 CWC 2026 Day-by-Day Fixtures South Africa Host Decoded

Rohan Bhatia 19 May 2026 Updated 19 May 2026 ~5 min read ~884 words

U19 CWC 2026 day-by-day fixtures decoded

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The ICC Men's U19 Cricket World Cup 2026 lands in South Africa across June 19 through July 12, 2026, with the tournament structured as four groups of four sides, a Super Six stage, two semi-finals and the final at the Wanderers in Johannesburg. The 16-team tournament is the first U19 World Cup hosted in South Africa since 1998, and Cricket South Africa has confirmed the four-venue rotation across the Wanderers, SuperSport Park, Newlands and St George's Park. With India defending the 2024 trophy and Pakistan, Australia and England as the other top-seeded sides, this is the most-watched U19 tournament yet. Here is the day-by-day decode of fixtures, broadcast routes and knockout dates.

Group stage, June 19-30

The group stage runs across 12 days, with the four groups of four sides playing the round-robin in parallel. Group A (India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Ireland) plays at SuperSport Park. Group B (Australia, Pakistan, Scotland, Nepal) plays at the Wanderers. Group C (South Africa, England, West Indies, USA) plays at Newlands. Group D (New Zealand, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Namibia) plays at St George's Park. The opening day is June 19 with India vs Ireland at SuperSport Park (10:00 SAST), Australia vs Nepal at the Wanderers (10:00), South Africa vs USA at Newlands (10:00), New Zealand vs Namibia at St George's Park (10:00). The schedule produces six fixtures per group across the round-robin, with the top three sides from each group advancing to the Super Six.

Super Six stage, July 2-7

The Super Six stage runs across six days with the 12 advancing sides split into two groups of six. The seeded positions carry forward from the group stage, with each side playing the three sides from the opposing group within their Super Six group. Super Six Group 1 takes Group A and Group D progressed sides, Super Six Group 2 takes Group B and Group C progressed sides. The seeding maths means the top side from each Super Six group advances directly to the semi-final, with the second and third-place finishers playing in the qualifier round. Fixtures rotate between the four venues, with the Wanderers carrying the Super Six marquee fixtures. The most-watched Super Six fixture is typically India vs Pakistan if both progress through.

Knockout stage, July 9-12

The U19 CWC 2026 knockout stage runs across four days. July 9 hosts the first semi-final at SuperSport Park, kick-off 10:00 SAST. July 10 hosts the second semi-final at Newlands, kick-off 10:00 SAST. July 11 is a tournament rest day before the final. July 12 hosts the U19 CWC final at the Wanderers in Johannesburg, kick-off 10:00 SAST. The reserve day for the final is July 13. The Wanderers has been confirmed as the rotational final host, with the venue's historical significance to South African cricket making it the prestige venue choice. Capacity at the Wanderers is 32,000, with all tickets released through the CSA's digital ballot system. Ticket pricing ranges from ZAR 120 in general admission to ZAR 1,800 in the corporate hospitality tier.

Broadcast routing and squad notes

Broadcast routing covers SuperSport for the South Africa and pan-African market, Star Sports for India and the sub-continent, JioHotstar for streaming, Channel Nine for Australia, Sky Sports for England, PTV Sports for Pakistan, ICC.tv for the global pathway feed in 80-plus markets. ESPNcricinfo handles the global ball-by-ball commentary feed. India enters as the defending champions with captain Ayush Mhatre leading. Pakistan's U19 squad is captained by Shahzaib Khan. Australia is captained by Tom Straker. England is captained by Hamza Shaikh. South Africa as hosts is captained by Steve Stolk. The four top-seeded squads have all confirmed full-strength selections, with the U19 Player of the Tournament award having a track record of identifying future international stars.

What it means

The U19 CWC 2026 in South Africa is the most-watched U19 tournament the ICC has produced, with the four-venue rotation, Super Six format and Wanderers final delivering a comprehensive showcase of pathway cricket. India defends with a deep squad, Pakistan looks to break India's dominance, Australia and England both have strong U19 systems, and South Africa as hosts has home-soil advantage. Watch the June 19 opener at SuperSport Park between India and Ireland for the early tone, the Super Six block for the cricket-quality benchmark, and the July 12 final at the Wanderers for the showpiece event. The U19 CWC remains the most-watched feeder tournament for future international cricket talent.