-official says it will be known in `due course’
On Sunday night, even as the curtains came down on the 2024 season of the Republic Bank sponsored Caribbean Premier League, legendary Guyanese and West Indies cricketer Sir Clive Lloyd announced the launch of a new T20 competition, the Global Super League, which will be hosted in Guyana from November 26 to December 7. The competition will see five teams from five different countries compete for a significant prize fund of US$1 million. The winner’s purse is unheard of in this part of the world and Stabroek Sports reached out to Peter Miller of the Global Super League regarding the sponsor of the prize fund.
He told this newspaper that the sponsor of the prize money would be confirmed in due course. However, since the Government of Guyana will be a key stakeholder in the competition, it begs the question of whether it will be putting up the prize money.
Meanwhile, according to a release from the Super League, the event will “feature the Guyana Amazon Warriors and four other established T20 teams from around the world”. “This will be South America’s first standalone cricket event and is sanctioned by Cricket West Indies and is fully supported by the government of Guyana who will be a key stakeholder in the tournament”. “The event will feature a mini league of 11 matches with each team playing four matches with the top two teams progressing to the final.
All matches will take place at the Guyana National Stadium in Providence, with the event set to take place annually featuring different teams from around the world being invited to take part each season” the release stated. Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali said: “The Global Super League has the full support of the Government of Guyana as we build a world class sports tourism product. Cricket is part of our cultural history, it is that unifying force, part of our heritage and an integral part of our strategic objective in economic diversification with a strong emphasis on Tourism.
As Guyana positions itself as a global shaper in the energy, food and climate landscape, we will use this platform to bring a world class tournament to our shores.”
Sir Clive Lloyd, who is the Chairman of Global Super League, declared; “I’d like to welcome cricket fans from around the world to this exciting new event. The passion for cricket in Guyana rivals that of fans anywhere, and we look forward to celebrating our love of the game and our rich and vibrant country with both those visiting in person and watching from around the world. I would like to thank His Excellency Dr Mohammed Irfaan Ali for his vision of a new cricket event for Guyana, one that will captivate the world.”
