ST JOHN’S, Antigua, (CMC) – West Indies Cricket Board president, Dave Cameron, says a grand event will be hosted for all “living West Indies cricketers”, along with a meeting for all present players, as the board seeks to improve relations in the regional cricket community.Speaking annual WICB/WIPA awards ceremony here this week, the Jamaican administrator said the two separate events would be held later this year, with the players’ conclave set for Trinidad and Tobago on August 24-25 and while the gala event scheduled for October.
“We have a number of initiatives for the rest of the year that will demonstrate to all our players and stakeholders how we want to view West Indies cricket as a tight family,” Cameron told those gathered last Tuesday.
The first of such is that we are meeting with our players in August 24 and 25 in Trinidad to understand what the challenges are and how we can get together.
“This is very important. This is not a meeting to come and dictate to you, this is a meeting to listen, as we want to make it better.”
Among the guests at the Awards Ceremony were Sir Richard Williams, Governor General of Antigua & Barbuda; Prime Minister Gaston Browne, West Indies legends Joel Garner, Courtney Walsh and Jeff Dujon; along with the members of the West Indies Under-19 team, West Indies women’s team, West Indies men’s team and the India men’s team.
“We intend to have a function on October of this year as we continue our 90th year of being part of the ICC family and also winning three championships on the world stage. We intend to invite all our living former players to this event,’ Cameron said.
“We are very proud to celebrate the success of the West Indies teams which won the three world titles earlier this year. Where we are, we are on a journey, we’re not at a destination. We intend to get better.
“We will not compromise on our standards anymore. We have compromised on our standards for a long time, and I want to say to the cricketing public we won’t compromise anymore.”
The WICB and its players have endured a rocky relationship in recent time. They clashed during the fractious abandoned tour of India in 2014 and issues resurfaced ahead of the recent Twenty20 World Cup in India and immediately after.