Trent Bridge to host ICC World Twenty20

Trent Bridge has been named as the third and final venue for next year's ICC World Twenty20, beating Old Trafford's bid to join The Oval and Lord's which had both been earlier approved.

"I know that there were some extremely competitive bids from all grounds who wanted to be a part of this exciting event," Steve Elworthy, the tournament director, said. "I am delighted that Trent Bridge joins Lord's and The Oval as a venue. It gives the tournament a good geographical spread without being logistically challenging for the players and officials

"We now know that Lord's will host the opening game and the final while both Trent Bridge and The Oval will stage the semi-final days, which will include both the men's and women's semi-finals."

At their meeting on April 2 the ECB's Major Match Group (MMG), chaired by Lord Morris of Handsworth, considered the outstanding bids from a number of venues, including Old Trafford. Jim Cumbes, the Lancashire chief executive, was disappointed but realistic over the club's chances of becoming the third venue. "Following the first bidding process when Lord's and The Oval were successful," he said, "the ICC announced that the final venue would ideally need to be within 120 miles of these two grounds for logistical reasons.

"Old Trafford did re-bid to be the third venue for the tournament, but we knew it would be a long shot considering the distance requirement between venues."