India, Oct. 2 -- The fixture for the 2027 ODI World Cup has been released. And with that, it has done more than just map out where and when the tournament will be played. The upcoming event will be played across three countries - South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, featuring 14 teams, 57 matches and a format that will ask the eventual champion to be consistent across nearly six and a half weeks. The schedule release has just made us realise how punishing the format is going to be.

For the teams that will enter the group stage of the tournament directly, winning the tournament would mean consistent performance across 13 matches - five in the group stage, six more in the Super 7 and then a semifinal and final. That is two more matches for ...