ICC unveils schedule for women’s Emerging Nations Trophy 2026

The second edition of the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy will take place from 12 to 25 November, with the exciting tournament expanding from eight to 10 teams, including five ICC Full Member teams for the first time as part of the ICC’s continued investment in the global women’s cricket pathway.

Full Members – Bangladesh, Ireland, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe – join Associate Member teams – the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Scotland, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at Karwan Sports and Seven Districts grounds in Ajman in the UAE.

The teams will compete in two groups of five before progressing to a Super Six stage, followed by the Final. The format was approved following a recommendation from the ICC Women’s Cricket Committee and confirmation by the ICC Chief Executives’ Committee, as part of the ICC’s broader efforts to strengthen the women’s cricket pathway.

Group A: Ireland, PNG, Scotland, Sri Lanka and the UAE

Group B: Bangladesh, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Thailand and Zimbabwe

The expansion in the number of participating teams reflects the ICC’s commitment to strengthening opportunities for teams across the women’s game. The competition brings together five Full Members and five Associate Members, providing players with increased opportunities to compete against a wider range of international opposition.

ICC General Manager – Events and Cricket Operations, Gaurav Saxena said: “The expansion of the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy to 10 teams is an important step in providing more meaningful international competition for emerging teams and supporting the continued growth of women’s cricket.

“Bringing together five Full Members and five Associate Members will create valuable opportunities for players to test themselves against a wider range of opposition and gain experience in a high-performance environment. We look forward to welcoming the participating teams to Ajman for the second edition of the tournament.”

The tournament builds on the inaugural edition in 2025, when Thailand claimed the title on home soil after finishing level on points with Scotland, the Netherlands and the UAE, with net run rate determining the final standings.

The inaugural competition also delivered notable individual performances, with several players making gains in the ICC Women’s T20I Player Rankings following the tournament. These performances proved the value of providing emerging teams with regular opportunities to compete at a high international level.

Match Schedule

[Timings are local UAE time]

Date Time Match Venue Phase 12 Nov 09:00 Sri Lanka vs Ireland Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 12 Nov 09:00 PNG vs Scotland Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 12 Nov 13:15 Pakistan vs Bangladesh Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 12 Nov 13:15 Netherlands vs Thailand Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 13 Nov 09:00 Scotland vs Sri Lanka Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 13 Nov 09:00 UAE vs Ireland Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 13 Nov 13:15 Thailand vs Pakistan Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 13 Nov 13:15 Zimbabwe vs Bangladesh Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 15 Nov 09:00 Thailand vs Zimbabwe Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 15 Nov 09:00 Pakistan vs Netherlands Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 15 Nov 13:15 Scotland vs UAE Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 15 Nov 13:15 Sri Lanka vs PNG Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 16 Nov 09:00 Bangladesh vs Netherlands Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 16 Nov 09:00 Zimbabwe vs Pakistan Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 16 Nov 13:15 Ireland vs PNG Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 16 Nov 13:15 UAE vs Sri Lanka Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 18 Nov 09:00 PNG vs UAE Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 18 Nov 09:00 Ireland vs Scotland Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 18 Nov 13:15 Netherlands vs Zimbabwe Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Group Stage 18 Nov 13:15 Bangladesh vs Thailand Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Group Stage 20 Nov 09:00 QA2 vs QB2 Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Super Six 20 Nov 09:00 QA1 vs QB3 Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Super Six 20 Nov 13:15 QB1 vs QA3 Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Super Six 22 Nov 09:00 QB2 vs QA1 Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Super Six 22 Nov 09:00 QB1 vs QA2 Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Super Six 22 Nov 13:15 QA3 vs QB3 Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Super Six 23 Nov 09:00 QA1 vs QB1 Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Super Six 23 Nov 13:15 QB3 vs QA2 Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Super Six 23 Nov 13:15 QA3 vs QB2 Seven Districts Sports Club, Ajman Super Six 25 Nov 09:00 Final Karwan Sports Club Cricket Ground, Ajman Final