Hosts England to face Bangladesh in tournament opener
Trans-Tasman rivals Australia and New Zealand to meet in repeat of World Cup 2015 final at Edgbaston on June 2
15 matches to be played over 18 days at three iconic venues; The Oval to stage the final on June 18
India will launch its ICC Champions Trophy title defence against traditional rivals Pakistan at Edgbaston, Birmingham, on June 4, 2017.
The 18-day tournament, from June 1 to 18, will also see matches played at the Cardiff Wales Stadium in Cardiff and The Oval in London.
A couple of days before the two Asian powerhouses go head to head, Australia and New Zealand will lock horns in a repeat of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 final at Edgbaston.
Event host and 2004 and 2013 finalist England will take on Bangladesh in the tournament opener at The Oval, which will also be the venue for a battle between former champions Sri Lanka and South Africa on June 3.
In the 2013 event, India defeated Pakistan by eight wickets in a rain-reduced match at Edgbaston and then went on to beat England by five runs at the same venue to win its second ICC Champions Trophy title.
However, in the 2009 event in South Africa, Pakistan beat India by 54 runs at Centurion, which interestingly is its only victory over its old foes in a major ICC event.
Australia won back to back ICC Champions Trophy titles in India and South Africa in 2006 and 2009 respectively, while New Zealand won the competition in Nairobi in 2000 when it was called the ICC Knock-Out.
England is hosting the event for the third time, having made the final on both the occasions.
In 2004, they narrowly lost the final to the West Indies at The Oval by two wickets, while in 2013 suffered a five-run defeat at Edgbaston.
South Africa won the inaugural event in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in 1998 while India and Sri Lanka shared the trophy in 2002.
The tournament schedule was announced at The Oval exactly a year before the first ball is bowled in the tournament, in which a total of 15 matches - including three knock-out games - will be played over two-and-a-half weeks.
The top eight sides on the MRF Tyres ICC ODI Team Rankings on September 30, 2015 have qualified for the tournament, with World champion Australia seeded number-one.
Australia head Group A, which also includes fourth seeds New Zealand, sixth seeds England and seventh seeds Bangladesh, who will be returning to the competition for the first time since 2006.
Defending champions India is seeded second and leads Group B, which also comprises third seed South Africa, fifth seed Sri Lanka and eighth seed Pakistan.
The top two sides from each group will progress to the semi-finals, which will be played at Cardiff and Edgbaston on June 14 and 15 respectively, with The Oval hosting the final.
There will be a reserve day for the final.
Previous winners
1998* – South Africa
2000* – New Zealand
2002 – Sri Lanka and India
2004 – West Indies
2006 – Australia
2009 – Australia
2013 - India
*The ICC Champions Trophy in 1998 and 2000 was known as the ICC Knock-Out
Groups (based on teams’ rankings as on 30 September 2015; x denotes seeding)
Group A Group B
x-1 Australia x-2 India
x-4 New Zealand x-3 South Africa
x-6 England x-5 Sri Lanka
x-7 Bangladesh x-8 Pakistan
The schedule:
Thurs, June 1: England v Bangladesh, The Oval (day)
Fri, June 2: Australia v New Zealand, Edgbaston (d)
Sat, June 3: Sri Lanka v South Africa, The Oval (d)
Sun, June 4: India v Pakistan, Edgbaston (d)
Mon, June 5: Australia v Bangladesh, The Oval (day/night)
Tues, June 6: England v New Zealand, Cardiff (d)
Wed, June 7: Pakistan v South Africa, Edgbaston (d/n)
Thurs, June 8: India v Sri Lanka, The Oval (d)
Fri, June 9: New Zealand v Bangladesh, Cardiff (d)
Sat, June 10: England v Australia, Edgbaston (d)
Sun, June 11: India v South Africa, The Oval (d)
Mon, June 12: Sri Lanka v Pakistan, Cardiff (d)
Wed, June 14: First semi-final (A1 v B2), Cardiff (d)
Thurs, June 15: Second semi-final (A2 v B1), Edgbaston (d)
Sun, June 18: Final, The Oval (d)
Mon, June 19: Reserve day (d)
Match timing – Day matches will start at 10h30 (UK time), while day/night matches will start at 13h30 (UK time)
