An opening match at Tauranga's Bay Oval and a final under lights at Hagley Oval are two of the highlights of a 31-match schedule announced today for ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2022.

The pinnacle event for women's cricket will see 31 matches played across 31 action-packed days between March 4 and April 3, 2022 – the first global women's cricket event to be played since the Women's T20 World Cup in Australia back in March.

The tournament was postponed from its original window in February-March 2021 with the same six host cities and venues retained for 2022.

Eight of the world's best cricket nations will go head-to-head in six host cities across Aotearoa: Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.

The much-anticipated Hagley Oval lights were switched on for the first time by Deputy Prime Minister, Hon. Grant Robertson at the announcement, with key Canterbury Cricket Trust, Canterbury Cricket Association and Christchurch city representatives in attendance earlier this month.

WHITE FERNS veteran and Canterbury Magicians representative Amy Satterthwaite attended the announcement at Hagley Oval.

'As a born-and-bred Cantabrian, it's fantastic to see the Hagley Oval lights up and running. To play in a World Cup at our own stomping ground here in Christchurch, under lights, would be a real career highlight," says Satterthwaite.

'It was hard to watch the T20 Women's Cricket World Cup from the sidelines back in March (after giving birth in January) so seeing the match schedule all locked in for the ODI World Cup here in 2022 gives both myself and the rest of the team a target to strive for as we prepare over the next 16 months.”

South Africa captain Dane van Niekerk says playing in a World Cup will be a memorable occasion.

'Any time you get the chance to play for your country and wear the Proteas on your jersey it's an honour.

'I have been fortunate to have the opportunity before to play at a Women's Cricket World Cup, but every new time is more special than the last. Every young cricket player dreams of playing for their country at the highest level, and we are definitely looking forward to the CWC22 in New Zealand."

India captain, Mithali Raj is also looking forward to leading her team to a win at the World Cup.

"We have all been through a very difficult year and are happy to be getting back at playing the game we all love.

"India has been doing very well at ICC tournaments in the past three or four years, whether you talk about the (ODI) World Cup or the recently concluded T20 World Cup, and if we manage to win the tournament in 2022, it will be a massive inspiration for the next generation of girls, as the fifty-over format, is considered the pinnacle for any cricketer.

"I can assure you the team and I are looking forward to it."

Sports fans across all six host cities will get a taste of the WHITE FERNS action with key match-ups taking place in each city.

The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2022 will be the first of two major cricket tournaments across the globe in 2022 – the other being the Commonwealth Games in England.

Prize money for the showpiece of women's international cricket will total NZD$5.5million, and all matches will be broadcast live to a huge global audience.

"The ICC has made a long-term commitment to elevating women's cricket as part of our strategy to grow and develop the global game," says ICC CEO, Manu Sawhney.

'We want to build a sustainable foundation for women's cricket. It is about building a product that fans want to watch, that kids want to take up, that sponsors and broadcasters want to be part of.

"This schedule takes the world's best cricketers across New Zealand and can help inspire a generation of girls and boys to take up the game.

'We are extremely proud of the significant progress we have made in increasing prize money for ICC events over the last few years, with the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2022 in New Zealand having $NZD5.5 million dollars available in prize money, an increase of almost 60% on 2017 and more than 1000 per cent compared to 2013.”

With the match schedule now locked in, ICC Women's Cricket World Cup CEO Andrea Nelson is excited to see the country get behind the event.

'Our team is proud to be delivering a tournament where Kiwis across the whole country, in each of our six host cities, can really get involved in what is a truly special event. We can't wait to see the excitement build around New Zealand as we prepare to roll out the welcome mat for the rest of the world.

'Major events like this one are all about creating a genuine legacy for the sport and we are proud to say our tournament was the catalyst for the installation of the Hagley Oval lights. I'd like to thank the New Zealand Government and the Canterbury Cricket Trust for making that happen.”

New Zealand, Australia, England, South Africa and India have qualified for the World Cup.

The three remaining teams will emerge from the ICC qualifying tournament which is confirmed to take place 26 June – 10 July 2021 in Sri Lanka.

The eight-team round robin format will see all teams play each other, with the top four teams qualifying for semi-finals.

ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2022 at a glance

• Hosted in New Zealand from 4 March to 3 April, 2022
• Eight nations
• 31 matches
• 6 host cities: Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin

Tournament fixtures by venue:

*denotes day/night

Bay Oval, Tauranga

Fri 04 Mar 2022 New Zealand v Qualifier*

Sun 06 Mar 2022 Qualifier v India*

Tue 08 Mar 2022 Australia v Qualifier *

Fri 11 Mar 2022 Qualifier v South Africa*

Mon 14 Mar 2022 South Africa v England*

Wed 16 Mar 2022 England v India*

Fri 18 Mar 2022 Qualifier v Qualifier

University Oval, Dunedin

Sat 05 Mar 2022 Qualifier v South Africa

Mon 07 Mar 2022 New Zealand v Qualifier

Wed 09 Mar 2022 Qualifier v England

Seddon Park, Hamilton

Sat 05 Mar 2022 Australia v England*

Thu 10 Mar 2022 New Zealand v India*

Sat 12 Mar 2022 Qualifier v India*

Mon 14 Mar 2022 Qualifier v Qualifier

Thu 17 Mar 2022 New Zealand v South Africa*

Mon 21 Mar 2022 Qualifier v Qualifier*

Tue 22 Mar 2022 India v Qualifier*

Basin Reserve, Wellington

Sun 13 Mar 2022 New Zealand v Australia

Tue 15 Mar 2022 Australia v Qualifier

Tue 22 Mar 2022 South Africa v Australia

Thu 24 Mar 2022 South Africa v Qualifier

Fri 25 Mar 2022 Qualifier v Australia

Sun 27 Mar 2022 England v Qualifier

Wed 30 Mar 2022 Semi Final 1

Eden Park, Auckland

Sat 19 Mar 2022 India v Australia*

Sun 20 Mar 2022 New Zealand v England

Hagley Oval, Christchurch

Thu 24 Mar 2022 England v Qualifier*

Sat 26 Mar 2022 New Zealand v Qualifier

Sun 27 Mar 2022 India v South Africa*

Thu 31 Mar 2022 Semi Final 2*

Sun 03 Apr 2022 FINAL*