BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – The Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) on Wednesday announced the suspension of its 2020 domestic season, which will see its highly anticipated inaugural T20 franchise competition being postponed until next year.
The decision, announced in a BCA statement, came a day after the first two cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) were confirmed here.
The BCA said that given the measures announced by the government – which include restricting the number of people at public gatherings, such as sporting events, to 100 – the April start of the domestic season will be suspended for at least 90 days.
“The association will assess this decision in light of the national context and any government directives at June 22nd, 2020,” it said.
“The inaugural edition of the BCA’s T20 franchise competition will now therefore be played in 2021. The BCA remains committed to the development of Barbados through its stewardship of the sport and looks forward to fortifying its relationship with stakeholders during this period of uncertainty.” The six-week franchise tournament, the Kadooment Twenty20 Cup, was expected to kick off the 2020 season on April 17, the first time semi-professional cricket would be played domestically.
Matches were set to be played by the six teams on Friday nights, with a double header on Sunday nights at Kensington Oval.
The names of the captains, the head coaches and one other official from the teams had been expected to be announced at a draft of players on Tuesday.
The suspension of the domestic season will also impact the regular T20 tournament which clubs and the schools in the Intermediate and Second Division participate in. That was to run simultaneously with the Kadooment Twenty20 Cup.
Several other local sporting events have been affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. While the final of the annual National Primary Schools’ Athletics Championships was allowed to go on as planned on Tuesday, as athletes and other students had gathered at the National Stadium before the announcement of the COVID-19 cases, the Barbados Secondary Schools’ Athletics Championships scheduled for Thursday and Friday have been cancelled.
