NEW YORK — The 16 nations competing in the World Baseball Classic 2017 now know the critical roadmap for the Opening Round, as the official tournament schedule has been revealed.

Group B – Tokyo

Headlining the openers, world No. 1 Japan and No. 5 Cuba will meet on 7 March at the Tokyo Dome. On Day 2 of Group B, No. 19 China will take on Cuba, while No. 13 Australia will open against Japan.

Group A — Seoul

No. 3 Korea and No. 42 Israel will get things started at the Gocheok Sky Dome on 6 March. This contest will be the first official game of the WBSC-sanctioned top-tier international tournament. The following day, Chinese Taipei will take on Israel, while No. 10 Netherlands will open against Korea.

Group C – Miami

The defending World Baseball Classic champions, No. 12 Dominican Republic, will face No. 6 Canada on 9 March at Marlins Park to open Group C, while No. 2 United States and No. 17 Colombia will open against each other the next day.

Group D — Guadalajara

No. 8 Mexico and No. 9 Italy will collide at Estadio Charros de Jalisco in Mexico on 9 March, with No. 7 Venezuela and No. 11 Puerto Rico doing battle the next day.

After the initial round-robin, the top two nations from each group will advance to the second stage.