India to face NZ, Sri Lanka in ICC Women's WC practice matches

Dubai [UAE], Apr 21 (ANI): India will begin their 2017 ICC Women's World Cup campaign with a practice match against New Zealand in Derbyshire on June 19. The practice matches, which will be played at four different venues from June 19-22, will give sides the chance to acclimatize to the conditions and also test the caliber of teams they will face later. India will next face Sri Lanka in their final practice game on June 21 in Chesterfield. The tournament proper, consisting of 31 matches, will be played across five venues including Lord's, which will host the final on July 23. The four top teams from the ICC Women's Championship 2014-16 - Australia, England, New Zealand and the West Indies, qualified directly for the tournament while the remaining four - India, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Pakistan came through the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier 2017 played in Colombo in February this year. Indian captain Mithali Raj said that they are eagerly awaiting the ICC Women's World Cup, especially after their thrilling victory against South Africa in the final of the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier in Colombo in February. "The warm-up matches provide teams with the chance to iron out any deficiencies and we look forward to making maximum use of them," she said. The practice match schedule: June 19: New Zealand v India in Derbyshire; England v Sri Lanka in Chesterfield. 20 June: West Indies v Pakistan in Leicestershire; Australia v South Africa in Oakham. 21 June: England v New Zealand in Derbyshire; India v Sri Lanka in Chesterfield. 22 June: Australia v Pakistan in Leicestershire; West Indies v South Africa in Oakham. (ANI)