MS Dhoni
India captain MS Dhoni (batting) seen in a match against Sri Lanka, has his work cut out to stop England from running away with this ODI seriesReuters

The International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy 2013 is set to begin on 6 June in England with top eight nations in the ICC ODI Rankings to fight for the coveted title.

The tournament, which is second in importance only to Cricket World Cup, will feature eight countries - Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies.

India and South Africa meet in the opening game to be held at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff on 6 June. The final match will be played on 23 June.

Australia, the defending champions, are the only country that have won the title twice since the conception of the tournament in 1998. Other countries that have won the title include South Africa (1998), New Zealand (2000), Sri Lanka and India (2002), and West Indies (2004).

Pakistan and England are the only countries participating in this year's competition that have not lifted the trophy, and Australia have lifted the trophy twice.

Tournament Format

Eight participating teams are divided into two - Group A and Group B - whereby each team will meet the other team in its group during the Group stage.

The top two teams from each group will move to the semi-finals. Winner of Group A will take on the runner up of Group B in the 1st semi-final, and the winner of Group B will meet the runner of Group A in the 2nd semi-final. Then the winners of 1st and 2nd semi-finals will meet in the final.

Champions Trophy 2013: Match Schedule and Fixtures:

Match Date Time Teams Venue
1, Group B Thu, 6 June 03:00 PM India v South Africa Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
2, Group B Fri, 7 June 03:00 PM Pakistan v West Indies Kennington Oval, London
3, Group A Sat, 8 June 03:00 PM England v Australia Edgbaston, Birmingham
4, Group A Sun, 9 June 03:00 PM New Zealand v Sri Lanka Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
5, Group B Mon, 10 June 05:30 PM Pakistan v South Africa Edgbaston, Birmingham
6, Group B Tue, 11 June 03:00 PM India v West Indies Kennington Oval, London
7, Group A Wed, 12 June 03:00 PM Australia v New Zealand Edgbaston, Birmingham
8, Group A Thu, 13 June 05:30 PM England v Sri Lanka Kennington Oval, London
9, Group B Fri, 14 June 03:00 PM South Africa v West Indies Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
10, Group B Sat, 15 June 03:00 PM India v Pakistan Edgbaston, Birmingham
11, Group A Sun, 16 June 03:00 PM England v New Zealand Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
12, Group A Mon, 17 June 05:30 PM Australia v Sri Lanka Kennington Oval, London
13 Wed, 19 June 03:00 PM TBC v TBC, 1st Semi-Final
(Group A winner vs Group B runner up) 		 Kennington Oval, London
14 Thu, 20 June 03:00 PM TBC v TBC, 2nd Semi-Final
(Group B winner vs Group A runner up) 		 Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
15 Sun, 23 June 03:00 PM TBC v TBC, Final
(1st Semi-Final winner vs 2nd Semi-Final winner) 		 Edgbaston, Birmingham