The West Indies cricket board is preparing to launch its franchise-based
Twenty20 league in 2013 and they have finalised an agreement with Verus
International, a Barbados-based merchant bank, for funding the
competition.
The league is likely to comprise six Caribbean city-based franchises with the majority of players from the West Indies.
As part of the arrangement, the WICB will receive annual funding for
additional retainer contracts for players. The board currently funds 20
annual retainer contracts.
"A significant number of players at the regional level will benefit
through greater financial stability both from playing in the league and
from year-round retainer contracts while having an international
platform on which to showcase their skills and talent," Dr Julian Hunte,
the WICB president, said.
"Most importantly, the league will bring a huge financial injection into
the Caribbean and create significant job opportunities across the
region in a wide cross section of sectors."
Ernest Hilaire, the former chief executive of the WICB, had initially revealed
that a "commercial Twenty20" league in the Caribbean was in the works
in September. Last month, Hilaire's successor, Michael Muirhead, said negotiations
for staging the inaugural Caribbean Premier League were on track and
that "might mean that the regional T20 cricket tournament might have to
be done away with".
Twenty20, often abbreviated to T20, is a form of cricket originally introduced in .... the 2007 ICC World Cricket League Division One, a 50-over competition. DB Mall
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