CWI, governments need to collaborate on improvement of facilities — Shallow
Cricket West Indies (CWI) President Dr. Kishore Shallow said facilities development and administration were crucial for efficient cooperation between his organization and Caribbean governments.
Shallow said CWI officials and the Caricom prime ministerial subcommittee on cricket would meet this week in Trinidad to discuss functional cooperation.
He added the 2019 ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean was the right moment to improve infrastructure at Caribbean international match venues.
“The governments have a massive role to play in the development of our cricket, and I understand the global challenges that they face in terms of finance, but they can definitely play a part in facilities improvement,” Shallow said during an in-studio interview on iSports on i95.5 FM in Trinidad on Thursday.
“Around the corner, we have a massive opportunity to do it when we host the ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup next year, so facilities, access to resources, and they have tremendous experience with administration, so there are different ways we can complement each other.”
“With the infrastructure, indoor facilities, where players can train morning, noon, and night regardless of the weather is absolutely necessary,” he said.
Compare the pitches in Dominica and Trinidad. We need more uniformity and higher standards because CWI cannot walk into a country and demand year-round facility maintenance.”
Shallow said CWI must sensitize Caribbean governments and stakeholders on how they can help West Indies cricket succeed.
“From preliminary discussions we have had [with the subcommittee], we are all on the same wavelength in terms of greater collaboration,” he said.
“I have stated clearly that I am quite open to having an inclusive environment and working closely with the government across the Caribbean.”
“There was some discussion that there was some hostility over a period of time, and Caricom Heads of Government did not feel like they were welcomed, and that was expressed to me,” he said.
“Under [predecessor] Ricky Skerritt, there was the intention to collaborate, and we met with a few prime ministers, but COVID-19 came and that hindered progress, and we are at a stage now where we are saying, ‘Let’s work together.'”
Shallow said he supported governments’ role in developing the sport in the Caribbean, but there needed to be candid discussions about the relationship’s bounds to avoid “involvement” in certain matters.
“It’s about communication between the two sides and it’s just like how we can’t go and get involved in their affairs,” he said. We share information with them because in every relationship, information helps you make better decisions.
“I suppose that’s it. Communicate better. Important stakeholders. They invest in cricket and sports across the Caribbean, so we must understand and appreciate their enthusiasm in cricket.”
“I would prefer to replace the word ‘interfere’ with the word ‘involvement’,” he remarked. Because regional administrations are busy, I’m managing and leading.
From what I’ve heard from our chats, they all want to develop West Indies cricket because they cherish it. We had good talks, and I expect more of the same.”
Shallow met with the subcommittee during the previous Caricom Heads of Government meeting from July 3 to 5 in Trinidad, which coincided with the West Indies’ failure to qualify for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 India in October.
He hoped the leaders’ passion might be channeled into “harmonising resources” and “identifying opportunities to improve further”.
