Pakistan to host eight-team ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier

The ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier (WWCQ) will be played in Lahore, Pakistan, between 19 and 25 November, it was confirmed today.

Besides the host nation, Zimbabwe, Papua New Guinea, Bermuda, Ireland, South Africa, Scotland and the Netherlands will all vie for two available slots in the 2009 ICC Women's World Cup.

Defending champions and hosts Australia, India, England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies have all earned automatic qualification for the 2009 event following their top-six finish in 2005 when it was held in Pretoria, South Africa.

Zimbabwe, in its debut appearance, qualified for the WWCQ from Africa, Papua New Guinea from East Asia-Pacific, Bermuda from the Americas, Scotland and the Netherlands from Europe and Pakistan from Asia.

South Africa and Ireland were not required to pre-qualify for the tournament in Lahore after finishing seventh and eighth respectively in the 2005 Women's World Cup.

Pakistan and South Africa started their preparations for the WWCQ in a five-match one-day series that was played in Pretoria. South Africa won the series 4-0 with storm washing out the last game.

The top teams will launch their preparations for the 2009 ICC Women's World Cup when Australia, India, England and New Zealand compete in a quadrangular series in Chennai, India, between 21 February and 5 March.

Chairperson of ICC Women's Committee Betty Timmer said she was delighted with the interest shown by Pakistan in hosting the WWCQ.

"We are very pleased with the PCB's involvement in the organization of the event. The dates are now confirmed and we are looking forward to this tournament in Lahore," she said.

"The establishment of the PCB women's wing in 2005 has led to a substantial strengthening of women's cricket in Pakistan and hopefully the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier will contribute to the accessibility of cricket for females in the country," she said.

"November will be a very exciting month for women's cricket as this event will be the inaugural women's event under the ICC umbrella.

"It is also an important phase of development for the women's game for Papua New Guinea, Bermuda and Zimbabwe as it will be their first appearances at the WWCQ," she said.

The venues and detailed schedule for the WWCQ will be announced in due course.

The 2009 ICC Women's World Cup to be staged in Australia will be the first to be played under the auspices of the ICC since its merger with the International Women's Cricket Council (IWCC) in 2005.

The Women's World Cup has been running for longer than the men's version and was first staged in England in 1973, when it was won by the hosts, which beat Australia by 118 runs in the final at Edgbaston, Birmingham.

Since then there have been a further seven tournaments with Australia winning five of them (1978, 1982, 1988, 1997 and 2005), England winning once more (in 1993) and New Zealand triumphing in 2000.

The tournament has been staged twice each in England (1973 and 1993), India (1978 and 1997) and New Zealand (1982 and 2000) as well as Australia (1988) and South Africa (2005).

The IWCC had 15 members and since integration the women's game has been growing fast. There are now 42 members with formal girls' and/or women's teams playing in structured cricket competitions.

A further 23 do not have competition teams yet but do have girls in junior development initiatives. That makes 65 of ICC's 97 members with some women's cricket and it is growing all the time.