The controversial proposal to dissolve the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) was not discussed when CARICOM leaders and the WICB top brass met in St George’s, Grenada last Friday. However, leaders from both groups confirmed that the dialogue will continue following a WICB board meeting scheduled for next Saturday.
After the three-hour meeting, officials from both parties kept a positive face about the dispute, telling the media that the session provided “frank, open and healthy” dialogue. But inside reports tell a tale of discord, with Board remaining adamant, while the CARICOM leaders insist on reform.
“All of us are very clear. The issue of the governance and structure of West Indies cricket, this is the fundamental issue,” declared Grenada’s Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell the chair of CARICOM’s Cricket Governance Sub Committee, after the meeting. “The leadership of the region will not be able to duck away. That has to be the front burner issue for us.”
Friday’s meeting was called by Dr. Mitchell following CARICOM’s Cricket Review Panel report in October, which called for the immediate dissolution of WICB. Meanwhile, the WICB says it is expecting feedback from the territories on the way forward for the governance of West Indies cricket during Saturday’s board meeting.
