KINGSTON, Jamaica – The West Indies Cricket Board gathered for a series of meetings last Friday and Saturday at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel here.
At the Directors’ Meeting, the following decisions were made and reports received:
Caribbean Premier League
The Directors received an update from the organisers of the Caribbean Premier League about their plans for the coming season and the expansion of the region’s marquee Twenty20 tournament.
Chief Operating Officer of the CPL Pete Russell said the Tournament had captured the imagination of the fans in the Caribbean and was already making a big impact outside of the region.
He also recommitted the organisers to fostering a closer relationship with the Territorial Boards to ensure the successful operation and execution of the Tournament, recognising the WICB was a part owner.
A Task Force between WICB and CPL will be established to oversee the ongoing relationship between the two organizations.
This year’s CPL will be played from June 21 to July 26.
Discussions with West Indies Players Association
WICB and WIPA have agreed to a process for mediation on the players’ rights to WICB sponsorship revenue and are working towards completing this exercise by the end of March with a view to incorporating the agreed terms in player contracts for the England Tour.
The third annual joint WICB/WIPA Awards Banquet is in the planning stages and is scheduled for June this year in Jamaica.
Ecomonic Impact Assessment
The WICB will soon commence an economic impact assessment to obtain empirical evidence about the hosting of matches in the Caribbean to support corporate and government sponsorship efforts.
Cricket Matters
The Directors received an update from WICB Director of Cricket Richard Pybus on the progress of his initial 20-point plan to improve the standard of the game in the Caribbean.
Some of the key accomplishments over the last year include:
-The introduction of the Professional Cricket League;
-Clarification of the West Indies Team mission and vision of becoming the No.1 side in the World in all formats through setting and achieving World-class standards of excellence in management, preparation, training and playing;
-Acceptance of the guiding principles of “no compromise on cricket excellence” and “Team West Indies first”;
-Definition of the optimal structure for West Indies cricket;
-Clarification of the roles and responsibilities of senior management of the West Indies Team;
-Review of retainer contracts for international players making them performance-based and bench-marked against World-class standards of cricket excellence; and
-Review and clarification of the WICB Selection Panel’s role, responsibilities, selection criteria and function along with the appointment of former West Indies wicketkeeper/batsman Courtney Browne as Regional Talent Manager with a special focus on Women’s and Youth cricket.
Regional Curator Kent Crafton had visited and assessed the regional first-class grounds with a special focus on the five international venues set to host Tests against England and Australia this year. He built relationships with local curators with a view to establishing the highest standards of curatorship to ensure playing and practice surfaces are consistent and of international quality. An initial report has been received and its findings were disseminated to Territorial Boards and Franchise Chief Executive Officers.
A Player Booklet outlining goals and responsibilities for players, including a pledge of commitment to West Indies Cricket, has been completed. This was one of the recommendations of the WICB Task Force which examined matters leading to the premature end of the Tour of India last year. Convenor of the WICB Selection Panel Clive Lloyd is reviewing the booklet before a final presentation is made to the Directors and it is introduced to the players during a formal presentation by him.
A number of other key development programmes targetted at school and club cricket in the territories, and aimed at lifting the standard of the game in the region will be rolled out over the coming weeks and months.
Professional Cricket League
The Directors approved new draft procedures which will enable the six franchises to retain their best players, but will also challenge them to select the best talent from across the region.
- Each franchise should submit 15 players to the Draft Pool
- Each franchise is allowed to retain a maximum of 10 players from their roster
- Each franchise is allowed to select a maximum of three players from the franchise’s territory out of the Draft Pool
- Each franchise is mandated to select a minimum of two players external to the franchise’s home base
- Each franchise can have one international player on their roster at the franchise’s own cost
Audited financial statements
The financial year 2013-14 was the first year under the 2013-19 Future Tours Programme published by the International Cricket Council and predictably was a difficult year with a net comprehensive loss of US $1.53 million and negative shareholders equity of US $5.4 million.
The actual net loss constituted a significant improvement over the budgetted loss at the start of the year which was US $7 million.
The improvement against budget was linked to the content of the international home tours with a reduction in the number of days of cricket.
Notwithstanding, there was an increase in the number of Tests hosted from two the previous year to five current year.
There were also changes to the format of the Regional Under-19 Tournament and to the Regional Women’s Super50 Tournament which resulted in reduced running costs.
As is standard practice, the Statement of Accounts will be published on the WICB’s website, www.windiescricket.com.
The Directors of West Indies Cricket Board comprise the nominated representatives of each of the six Full Members plus four independent directors. The meeting was chaired by WICB President Whycliffe “Dave” Cameron. Also present are the WICB Vice President, the WICB Chief Executive and the WICB Corporate Secretary.
WICB President, Whycliffe “Dave” Cameron, WICB Vice President, Emmanuel Nanthan, WICB Chief Executive Officer, Michael Muirhead, WICB Corporate Secretary, Verlyn Faustin, Barbados, Joel Garner, Deighton Smith, Guyana, Anand Senasie, Anand Kalladeen, Jamaica, Wilford “Billy” Heaven, Dr. Donovan Bennett, Leeward Islands, Auckland Hector, Enoch Lewis, Trinidad & Tobago, Azim Bassarath, Baldath Mahabir, Windward Islands, Julian Charles, Elson Crick, Independent Member, Juliana Nero, Independent Member, Clifford Reis, Independent Member, Richard “Ricky” Skerritt, Independent Member, Don Wehby.
The attendees of the Annual General Meeting of the West Indies Cricket Board comprise the nominated representatives of each of the six Full Members plus Special Member Representatives from the West Indies Players Association, West Indies Cricket Umpires Association, Association of Caribbean Tertiary Institutions, Association of Caribbean Mediaworkers, CARICOM, Caribbean Association of Industry of Commerce and Caribbean Tourism Organization. The meeting was chaired by WICB President Whycliffe “Dave” Cameron. Also present were the WICB Vice President, WICB Chief Executive Officer and WICB Corporate Secretary and the Directors of the WICB by special invitation.
WICB President: Whycliffe “Dave” Cameron, WICB Vice President: Emmanuel Nanthan, WICB Chief Executive Officer: Michael Muirhead, WICB Corporate Secretary: Verlyn Faustin, Barbados: Wendell Kellman, Conde Riley, Guyana: Drubahadur, Rajendra Singh, Jamaica: Fritz Harris, Osmond Dann, Leeward Islands: Zorol Barthley, Nathaniel Walters, Trinidad & Tobago: Dr. Allen Sammy, Arjoon Ramlal, Windward Islands: Dwain Gill, Lockhart Sebastien, West Indies Players Association, Wavell Hinds, West Indies Cricket Umpires Association, Cecil Fletcher, Association of Caribbean Tertiary Institutions, Dr. Perry George, Association of Caribbean Media Workers, Dr. Canute James, CARICOM, Dr. Douglas Slater, Caribbean Association of Industry & Commerce, Edward Chin Mook, Absent:Caribbean Tourism Organization. (WICB)