Vaughan slams ICC for favouring India in semi-finals

LONDON: Former England captain Michael Vaughan has voiced his discontent with scheduling the T20 World Cup 2024 semi-finals, suggesting it unfairly benefits India.

Vaughan criticised the decision to hold the first semi-final between Afghanistan and South Africa in Trinidad, highlighting the logistical challenges faced by Afghanistan.

“So Afghanistan qualify for the WC [World Cup] semi winning in St Vincent on Monday night… 4 hr flight delay on Tues [Tuesday] to Trinidad so no time to practise or get accustomed to a new venue… utter lack of respect to players I am afraid,” Vaughan posted on X.

He further claimed that the tournament schedule was biased towards India.

“Surely this [Afghanistan vs South Africa] semi should have been the Guyana one… but because the whole event is geared towards India it’s so unfair on others,” he said.

The second semi-final in Guyana on Thursday features India and England.

South Africa defeats Afghanistan by 9 wickets in T20 World Cup semi-final

However, weather forecasts predict a 60% chance of rain, likely to disrupt the match.

While a reserve day was allocated for the first semi-final, no such provision exists for the second one.

To mitigate potential delays, the ICC has allowed an additional 250 minutes for the semi-final to be completed, giving ground staff ample time to prepare the pitch if weather conditions improve.

In the event of a washout, the team that finished higher in their Super 8 group will progress to the final.

This scenario favours India, who topped Super 8 Group 1 with a perfect record, over England, who finished second with two wins out of three matches.