In a shock move that could affect the future of West Indies cricket, the two development teams will be cut from the upcoming marquee regional cricket tournament.
The DAILY NATION understands that Cricket West Indies (CWI) has decided to axe Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) and the West Indies Academy from the upcoming CG United Super50 limited overs tournament.
The decision was discussed at the recent meeting of the board of directors of the regional governing body. It was communicated to the teams, players and officials by Miles Bascombe, the CWI Director of Cricket. This was confirmed by multiple sources with knowledge of the development. This will affect at least 30 players who have been preparing for the tournament over the last month.
The first round of the upcoming Super50 tournament is expected to be played in Trinidad in November. The semi-finals and finals are slated for Guyana in December. It is also understood that the two teams will be removed from the regional four-day first-class tournament next year, but this could not be confirmed as the match schedule is yet to be formatted.
Great concern
Roland Butcher, the former England cricketer and former West Indies senior men’s selector, expressed great concern about the decision by CWI. The formation of CCC was Butcher’s brainchild when he held the post of Director of Sports at the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI). They won the regional 50-over title back in 2018 under the captaincy of Carlos Brathwaite.
“The news reaching me, if confirmed that Cricket West Indies have removed Combined Campuses and Colleges and the Academy teams, is a regrettable and backward step. CCC has been part of the West Indies programme since around 2006 and as the former director of Sport at UWI, I was instrumental
in that programme coming on stream. The CCC programme has over the years contributed significantly to the development of West Indies cricket by exposing players from across the region who were at university with a high level of cricketing ability as well as academic ability. They were part of our programme and continued playing cricket at the regional and international levels.” Butcher said.
Provides opportunity
He added that the “Academy provides the players in the programme with the opportunity to continue their education in developing to be a first-class cricketer. This move by CWI will significantly impact West Indies cricket in the future.”
The 71-year-old is the first Black man to play for England. He spoke to NATIONSPORT from the United Kingdom where he is conducting a tour to launch his recent biography Breaking Barriers – Barbados to England and Back. He charged that the various territorial boards need to find better systems to move players from the junior ranks to the senior level.
According to Butcher, the news of the reduction in regional teams will mean less opportunities for the young players in the region who are in the developmental stages of their careers, when they need the most guidance. It also comes two months after the West Indies were bowled out for an all-time low 27 runs against Australia and while they suffered the humiliation of a heavy defeat in the ongoing T20I series at the hand of Nepal in the United Arab Emirates. (PS)
