The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the fixture list for the first-ever ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy T20I, a new global tournament aimed at widening participation and competitive opportunities for developing women’s cricket teams. The event will take place in Bangkok, Thailand, from 20 to 30 November 2025, with matches to be held at the Terdthai Cricket Ground and the Asian Institute of Technology.
Eight teams which include Thailand, the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, the United Arab Emirates, Scotland, Namibia, Tanzania and Uganda, will take part in the competition, representing four different continents. The launch marks a further step in the ICC’s long-term plan to expand the women’s game and strengthen the international pathway for emerging nations.
The announcement follows the unprecedented success of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025, which drew record global engagement. More than 500 million viewers tuned in from India alone, while several other countries also recorded sharp increases in viewership. The accompanying Women’s Cricket Week initiative saw over 40 nations host events aimed at increasing the visibility of women’s cricket and broadening participation.
Attendance figures were similarly striking, with nearly 300,000 spectators attending matches across India and Sri Lanka. The tournament ended with India becoming the first Asian nation to win the Women’s Cricket World Cup, a landmark achievement widely regarded as a turning point for both the sport and perceptions of women in cricket within the region.
Building on that momentum, the ICC has introduced the Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy as part of a newly designed three-tier development pathway. The organisation hopes the structure will provide promising players with greater exposure to high-level competition, thereby helping teams progress more rapidly and improve their overall performance standards.
Sanjog Gupta, Chief Executive of the ICC, said: “It is the ICC and the Chair’s vision to sustainably expand Cricket’s footprint across the world and grow the women’s game. Providing elite athletes from emerging nations more opportunities to play at the highest level is aimed at fast-tracking their development and improving the competitiveness of their teams. It also drives the visibility of the sport in participant nations, serving as a driver of girls’ involvement in the sport and inspires women from other nations to stay committed to the development pathways.”
The tournament begins on 20 November, with Thailand facing the Netherlands and Papua New Guinea meeting the UAE in the opening fixtures. The Final is scheduled for 30 November.
