Interestingly, this will be the first time a global, multi-sport event will have more women’s events than men’s.
this version of Commonwealth Games After shooting and archery have been removed from the Games, some new events will also be included.
TimesofIndia.com takes a look at the new programs included in the CWG in Birmingham edition here:
women’s cricket
(File image of Indian women’s cricket team – Photo: BCCI Twitter)
The wait for cricket fans in Commonwealth countries to watch their favorite sport at the Commonwealth Games is finally over. Cricket will return to the Commonwealth Games in a new avatar after a long gap of 24 years. The Birmingham Commonwealth Games will not only mark the debut of T20 cricket, but will also mark the first appearance of women’s cricket at the Games. Cricket has been played once before at the Commonwealth Games, at the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Games where South Africa won the gold medal in the men’s 50-over competition by defeating Australia in the final. India also sent a team to those games, which had Ajay Jadeja as the captain and Anil Kumble as the vice-captain. Sachin Tendulkar was also a part of the team, but India did not reach the semi-finals.
This time, there is no men’s cricket in the Games and women’s cricket will be played in the Commonwealth Games edition for the first time. Eight teams in Group A along with India, Pakistan, Australia and Barbados have qualified for the event. Group B consists of New Zealand, South Africa, England and Sri Lanka. England received automatic qualification as the host nation, while Australia, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and Barbados are included in the six direct qualifiers based on their rankings as of April 1, 2021. Sri Lanka finished last as winners. CWG Qualifier tournament
The cricket competition will start from July 29 in which India will take on Australia while the final will be held on August 7. Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham will host all the matches. The matches will be played in T20 format. Harmanpreet Kaur is leading India.
basketball 3×3
A 3×3 version of basketball has been introduced to enthrall the audience with its fast pace. The 5×5 version of the game has been played twice in the first games, first in Melbourne in 2006 and then on the Gold Coast in 2018. The 3×3 version will be played for the first time in the Games.
The 3×3 game will be fast and furious with only half the court and only one circle for both teams to attack. Not only has the size of the court been halved, the time on the shot clock has also been reduced from 24 seconds (permitted in full court basketball) to 12 seconds.
As the name suggests, each team will have three players and one substitute. Shots made from inside the arc-shaped scoring zone are worth one point each, while shots taken from behind the arc zone will add two points to the team’s account.
The first team to score 21 points wins. If a team does not reach the score after ten minutes, the team in the lead claims the win. The event will be played at the Smithfield site.
Eight teams from both men’s and women’s categories will participate in the competition.
Basketball 3×3 . Qualified nations in the men’s category for
host: England
regional qualification: Kenya (Africa), Canada (USA), Sri Lanka (Asia), Trinidad and Tobago (Caribbean), New Zealand (Oceania)
direct qualification: Australia
home nation qualifier: Scotland
Nation Qualified in Women’s Category for Basketball 3×3:
host: England
regional qualification: Kenya (Africa), Canada (USA), Sri Lanka (Asia), British Virgin Islands (Caribbean), New Zealand (Oceania)
direct qualification: Australia
home nation qualifier: Scotland
wheelchair basketball 3×3
(Representational Image – TOI Photo)
basketball with 3×3, Commonwealth Games Federation The Para version of the game was also brought to the roster of Commonwealth Games for the first time. No wheelchair basketball discipline has previously been displayed at the Commonwealth Games. The event will also be staged at the Smithfield site.
The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) and the CGF announced that this time six wheelchair teams would take part in the CWG.
England, South Africa and Malaysia have been placed in Group A, while Canada, Australia and Northern Ireland are placed in Group B.
Canada, Kenya and England are in Group A in the women’s draw, while Scotland, Australia and South Africa are in Group B.
The round-robin group stage will be followed by the semi-finals and final.
para table tennis
(File image of India’s Paralympic medalist Bhavnaben Patel – TOI Photo)
Para table tennis was declared as one of the sports disciplines Birmingham 2022 program in August 2019. The competition will be played at the National Exhibition Center (NEC) Hall 3. In Para Table Tennis, 32 athletes (16 each in men’s and women’s draws) will compete in four medal events in the sport.
The qualifying criteria was – five places per event as determined by the ITTF Para Table Tennis Ranking List; One for the United States/Caribbean regions, plus one for each of the other four CGF regions. One more place per event is determined directly by the ranking above. The final two places in each event are determined by CGF/ITTF bipartisan invitations.