World Cup 2023: What will happen if a semifinal or final ends in a tie?

For the 2023 World Cup, ICC has tweaked the rules a bit to avoid the confusion from the 2019 final, where England and New Zealand played out a tie in the Super Over, with the former winning on boundary count.

The World Cup trophy is pictured before the start of a match. | Photo Credit: ARUN SANKAR/AFP

The ODI World Cup has entered its final leg, with the semifinal set to happen on November 15 and 16 and the final to take place on November 19.

The drama of the 2019 World Cup final, where England and New Zealand played out a tie, followed by a Super Over, which too finished in a tie, is still fresh in the mind of the cricketing world. England was declared the winner based on a superior boundary count.

But for the 2023 World Cup, ICC has tweaked the rules a bit for matches that end in ties to avoid the confusion from 2019.

What will happen if a semifinal or final ends in a tie?

ICC had stipulated in its Playing Conditions that “if the match is tied a Super Over is played. If the Super Over is a tie, then subsequent Super Overs shall be played until there is a winner. Unless exceptional circumstances arise, there shall be an unlimited number of Super Overs played to achieve a result.

This means that if a league stage match had ended in a tie, the game would have proceeded to a Super Over, which has never happened before in a non-knockout match in the tournament.

To simplify it, if any of the semifinals or final end in a tie, the match will move to a Super Over. If that too ends as a tie, another Super Over will be played. The sequence will continue until a conclusive winner is found.

What will happen if weather conditions prevent a Super Over from happening?

According to the ICC Playing Conditions in the semifinal, “If following a tie, weather conditions prevent the Super Over from being completed, or if the match is abandoned or a no result at the end of the reserve day, then the team which proceeds to the final will be the team that finished in the higher position in the league stage.”

But if a similar situation arises in the final, the finalists will be adjudged joint-winners.