Twenty20 Comes to the West Indies

[Andy Mellon]

A Texan Businessman is investing $28m in West Indian cricket by launching an inter-island Twenty20 cricket league. The league will feature teams from:

Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Maarten, British Virgin Islands, St Vincent, Trinidad & Tobago.

Surprised the USA team doesn't get a look in, and also surprised that Montserrat still has enough people living there to get a squad together after the volcano a few years back.

Anyway, each team will get $100k for getting involved, and the winner takes $1m. All in the aim of rejuvenating Caribbean interest in cricket. I reckon this'll go down a storm in the Caribbean as the locals can really get behind their Island!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cric...es/4307344.stm

[flanflinger]

Andy,

Just read the same story.

I for one and very happy. I have always had a soft spot for the way the Caribbean teams play the game and the knowedge and passion of it's fans. Hopefully some serious investment will halt the decline that has saddened so many Crikcet fans.

Just as long as someone sorts out the current board and gets the likes of Lara, Gayke and Sarwan back in the team then things may have a chance of getting better in the short term.

[Andy Mellon]

I agree, world cricket needs a strong West Indian side, and this gives the West Indies something they haven't really had before, a chance to witness swashbuckling Caribbean cricket, but with the benefit of actually being able to support their own country rather than an indescript union of countries. Bringing back fans to West Indian cricket is a good start, but other steps need to be taken. Also, the problem may arise that fans become more partizan for their own Island rather than developing support for the 'West Indies'.

I'll wait and see what happens. I have to say that if I'm ever in the Caribbean, I'd try and catch a match.

[Ninjaman]

People in the WI can get to see their own islands play all the time. Only 2 of the 6 first class entities in the West Indies are not countries in their own right. (Jamaica, Barbados, Guyana and T&T) the other two (The Leeward and Windward Islands) are amalgamations of other islands. Those islands do take part in inter-island games too.

From a viewpoint of the game, the last thing WI cricket needs is 20/20 cricket.

The players need to be playing longer cricket

There is a far easier way to "bring back fans" to WI cricket.

Just start playing good cricket.

The easiest crowd filler.

Money is tight and days have to be booked off to watch a whole day's cricket so people are going to be more and more discerning as to what they spend their money and time on.

They are not going to waste it on a team that can't bat for a full day at times and gets declared on all the time.

People have not fallen out of love with the game.

As for this money and new competition, I'll reserve judgement for now.

[flanflinger]

Originally Posted by Ninjaman

Money is tight and days have to be booked off to watch a whole day's cricket so people are going to be more and more discerning as to what they spend their money and time on.

Which is why Twenty20 works... it is short, you do need to take the day off and can be done in the evening.

I know the Players possibly need to learn how to play longer, but Twent20 Cricket is a great way of getting buns on seats, getting young people watching Cricket, and hopefully get them playing!!

The fact is that when you look at the average West Indies Crowd it is full of old men. You need to get excitement amongst all ages and both sexes.

[Ninjaman]

Originally Posted by flanflinger

Which is why Twenty20 works... it is short, you do need to take the day off and can be done in the evening.

Well they will need to build floodlights at all the grounds first!!!

The first ever day night match in the WI is scheduled for May next year.

My point about having to take the day off was not about it being played at day anyhow.

It was about wanting to take a day off knowing the team is liable to play poorly

That's a waste of a day off!

I know the Players possibly need to learn how to play longer, but Twent20 Cricket is a great way of getting buns on seats, getting young people watching Cricket, and hopefully get them playing!!

Lots of young children watch cricket there. Many a Test match in the WI will have lots of youngsters given the day off to go and watch cricket.

Every major high school in the Caribbean plays cricket.

Therre is no shortage of kids playing cricket.

WI problem is transferring those good kids into good young cricketers and then into fully fledged Test/ODI players.

The fact is that when you look at the average West Indies Crowd it is full of old men. You need to get excitement amongst all ages and both sexes.

You must be joking.

A far higher % of young women are at cricket than are say in England.

***

As for this investment, this will be independent of the WICB.

Not entirely a bad thing, but do we wish to see a Kerry Packer-esque situation?

What happens if he is able to permanently nab the better WI players for his tournament and the WICB is left with even worse players to play in the ODIs and Tests??

Will it be a good thing for WI cricket or cricket on the whole then??

Just questions that need to be asked before the claim that this is good for WI CRICKET can be made!!

I am not saying these things will happen and potentially a lot of benefits can be had from this, I will just reserve judgment until the experiment bears fruit.

[flanflinger]

Originally Posted by Ninjaman

You must be joking.

A far higher % of young women are at cricket than are say in England.

***

The Carib Girls don't count

When I have watched a Test match from the Caribean on TV from what I see there is a huge number of old men in the crowd, and very few young guys.

The saddest thing is that you don't even get full-houses for Tests anymore (execpt when England play and bring the Barmy Army on mass)

[flanflinger]

It does amaze me that every time Twenty20 has started up in a new country "fans" come up with reasosn why it will not work, will never last and will effect the players.

Yet within weeks of a tournament starting and the full houses start to happen and people see taht Twenty20 has some merit, many of those comments are proved foolish.

IMO anything that gets new generations of fans into grounds, wtaching Cricket is a good thing.

[Ninjaman]

Originally Posted by flanflinger

The Carib Girls don't count

When I have watched a Test match from the Caribean on TV from what I see there is a huge number of old men in the crowd, and very few young guys.

The saddest thing is that you don't even get full-houses for Tests anymore (execpt when England play and bring the Barmy Army on mass)

Well weigh up what you see on TV and what I see when I am at the grounds.

As for not getting full houses anymore, you keep proving my point.

What's changed in WI cricket?

Answer: They are not as good as they used to be and so crowds go down.

England are better than they used to be and so their crowds (and interest) are going up.

The central issue is the fortune and quality of the side.

It does amaze me that every time Twenty20 has started up in a new country "fans" come up with reasosn why it will not work, will never last and will effect the players.

Well, in my case, I don't think I've ever mentioned that it will fail or not last at all.

I'm just saying that before I jump for joy and get myself full of optimism, I'd actually wait and see what the bigger picture is.

Yet within weeks of a tournament starting and the full houses start to happen and people see taht Twenty20 has some merit, many of those comments are proved foolish.

Once again, I can only speak for myself and say I've also not said 20/20 is useless.

I've said a 20/20 competition isn't exactly the thing that WI cricket needs the most right now.

You stated in your first post, " Hopefully some serious investment will halt the decline that has saddened so many Crikcet fans. Just as long as someone sorts out the current board and gets the likes of Lara, Gayke and Sarwan back in the team then things may have a chance of getting better in the short term."

And my point to that is this whole 20/20 thing is, at present, independent of the board and Stanford is looking to make profit for himself.

The board, who are responsible for the WI you see in ODIs and Tests, may not get any money out of this.

I'd love for TEN billionaires to make TEN competitions in the WI of even stick cricket, but if they are doing it to ingratiate themselves instead of building the game, then one should be concerned.

Add in to that, I know of things about Stanford, (he is no saint but then which billionaire is ) and so I will reserve judgement not because I want it to fail ( I don't) or for any other reason than numerous men of money have entered the Caribbean with lofty dreams only to leave with an inflated bank account and a few people left behind having had their palms greased.

The biggest sponsorship deal in WI cricket history was Digicel's $4M a year or so.

That has been followed by corruption, incompetence and the dropping of players from a side on the sponsors say so more or less.

Now when you bring in close to $30 million!! I see vultures, my friend.

IMO anything that gets new generations of fans into grounds, wtaching Cricket is a good thing.

Which proves you are still stuck on attendance levels and the redundant idea that WI problem is people don't watch or don't follow the game.

Cricket is a professional sport and it must deliver a product.

In the WI case, the product is poor with only intermittent flashes of decency.

Thus attendances drop and more drastically in an area where disposable income is far far less.

If this current 2005 side fell over, hit their heads and started playing like even the 1965 side let alone the 1985 side and performances picked up, attendances would rise dramatically.

Then everyone would say "People are back in love with cricket in the WI" when in fact, they always liked it just they voted with their feet to stay away whilst some players carried on with foolishness.

WI attendance levels at Tests and ODIs dropped because WI quality of cricket in Tests and ODIs dropped.

NOT vice versa.

You want attendance levels up??

Improve the cricket quality.

Stanford's millions look most welcome and, most likely, much financial benefit will be had from them.

But until the WI puts in place a system that adequately nurtures its pplayers and looks after their physical, mental and financial needs, then they'll always be occupying this lower rung.

....now what's the score in the Super Series ODI??

[flanflinger]

Originally Posted by Ninjaman

England are better than they used to be and so their crowds (and interest) are going up.

Crowds for Tests have been exceptional this year, but as someone who watches Cricket at the Oval, I know that you need to get your Test match application in before January to get tickets. We often have full houses in Englnad for Test cricket.

However, we do not normally get Full Houses for County games and the demographic is normally Old men. But for Twenty20's you get full houses and the crowd demographic is younger and contains more women. Getting people into to see County games is crucial for the long term viabilty of the Test and ODI team

Originally Posted by Ninjaman

Now when you bring in close to $30 million!! I see vultures, my friend.

I do agree here, the money needs to be handled well, and needs to get to the grass roots.

I am not against this guy making money though - if the tournament is a success and it gets people watching and enjoying this great game, why not make some money out of it as well. I do not feel he will make a lot in the short term though

Originally Posted by Ninjaman

But until the WI puts in place a system that adequately nurtures its pplayers and looks after their physical, mental and financial needs, then they'll always be occupying this lower rung.

I agree and maybe you need this type of investment. One of the problems I see is that the American sports can offer big bucks, where as Cricket dosen't so if you are a guy looking to use sport for a career what do you choose Baseball or Cricket? One could pay you millions, one does not. Maybe if you can start paying some serious money it could encourge kids to take up Cricket rather than the American sports.