Champions League returns to India

The Champions League T20 2013 will be held in India from September 17 to October 6 and there will be no team from England in the tournament. The West Indian champions, who had to play Qualifiers in the last two editions, will feature in the main draw.

The schedule, announced on Friday, has ten teams split in two groups, with the top two in each group making the semi-finals. Eight teams have been seeded directly into the main competition and will be joined by two of the four qualifiers.

One of those qualifiers is the Pakistan side Faisalabad Wolves, who recently won the Faysal Bank Super Eight T20 Cup; their participation in the tournament will be interesting given the fragile diplomatic and sporting ties between India and Pakistan.

Trinidad & Tobago find a place in the main draw, after sustained public pressure following strong performances in previous seasons. They had finished runners-up in the inaugural edition in 2009, but had to play the qualifying round in 2011 and 2012.

The ECB's announcement that no teams from England will take part in this year's competition has opened up slots for other domestic teams.

Group A: IPL 1st ranked team (India), Highveld Lions (South Africa), Perth Scorchers (Australia), IPL 3rd ranked team (India), Q1 (Qualifier)

Group B: IPL 2nd ranked team (India), Titans (South Africa), Brisbane Heat (Australia), Trinidad & Tobago (West Indies), Q2 (Qualifier)

Qualifier: IPL 4th ranked team (India), Otago Volts (New Zealand), Sri Lanka qualifier, Faisalabad Wolves (Pakistan)