‘CWI-SANCTIONED Global Super League set to launch’!

I was taken aback when my learned cricket colleague forwarded the above mentioned article concerning the Global Super League, which is going to be launched in Guyana next month, during the Bangladesh tour of the West Indies.

It actually spoiled my morning.

I said in mock sarcasm: ‘Excellent!’

The ‘Global Super’ League (GSL), a well-kept secret, features only five teams, and will be played from November 26 to December 7-and yes, it is fully sanctioned by Cricket West Indies (CWI) and fully supported by the government of Guyana.

The GSL will clash with Bangladesh’s tour of the Caribbean between November 22 to December 20! Plus the English will be in the Caribbean for the white ball series and five T20s from October 31–November 17, 2024. A truly packed rainy season schedule. Yes, that’s what we have to get accustomed to when you are floundering at the bottom of the table in almost all formats: cricket in the rainy season!

The ‘bounty’ for the GSL is US$1 million and features the Guyana Amazon Warriors and four ‘established’ T20 teams from around the world-what a small world we live in! CWI has kept this competition under the covers and definitely caught me on the back-foot. Rumour has it that Hampshire, the three times champion of England’s T20 Blast; Rangpur Riders, one of the semi-finalists of the Bangladesh Premier League; and the South African Titans are the other three teams. At the time of writing, the fifth team is yet to be named.

Incidentally, the GSL had to get approval from the CPL due to the ridiculous 50-year agreement when CWI sold the T20 tournament rights to the CPL! As noted cricket commentator Fazeer Mohammed said recently under the heading ‘Triumph for CPL-this 21st century franchise format of the centuries-old game is already woven into the fabric of the T&T sporting tapestry’.

GSL chairman, the 80-yearold Clive Lloyd, says: ‘The passion for cricket in Guyana rivals that of fans anywhere, and we look forward to celebrating our love of the game and our rich and vibrant country with both those visiting in person and watching from around the world’.

I mean-really? Is the passion really for cricket? Where does the buck stop? My colleague reminded me that the likes of Hetmeyer, Motie, Sharmah, Sinclair and Hope would be plying their trade for the Amazon whilst WI Test, one-day and T20 Warriors would be slugging it out with Bangladesh.

For the few that follow the last days of Test cricket, this could indeed be the final nail in the coffin-and sanctioned by CWI? We have been struggling to get overseas teams to visit the West Indies, and when they do, they now do so in the rainy season. Is the cricket the lure or our tourism? How ludicrous can we get?

One would have thought that the CWI would have switched focus to developing and preparing our teams for the Olympics T20 competition to be held in 2028, rather than further crowding up the cricket calendar. My understanding is that the GSL will be an annual affair.

Small wonder that WI is sitting at the bottom of the table in World Test Championship (ninth) and can ill afford to be without Motie and Shamar versus seventh-placed Bangladesh, whilst Shai Hope would improve our chances of a 2-0 win.

Could CWI be shooting West Indies cricket in the foot, thereby signalling ‘lights out’ not only in Providence, but for this once-great game which arguably is the only thing that has unified our Caribbean people?

Terrence Kalloo On the Backfoot