Lloyd Severs Ties with Stanford

Clive Lloyd has severed ties with Stanford 20/20 board of directors because of concerns over how the future of the tournament affects West Indies cricket.

Lloyd confirmed his resignation in an e-mail to CaribbeanCricket.com but did not provide reasons for his decision. It comes after lengthy discussions with R Allen Stanford, the Texan billionaire who spent $41 million to bankroll the recent tournament.

According to a well-placed source, the former West Indies captain was concerned that a looming clash between Stanford and the WICB would put him in an uncomfortable position.

Lloyd is a WICB director and chairman of the board's cricket committee and sources say the behind-the-scenes dispute between the financier and the WICB has presented Lloyd with a clear conflict-of-interest.

Stanford has been pressuring the WICB to make the best players available for his "SuperStar" match against South Africa on November 10 but, as per the ICC Future Tour Programme (PDF file), the West Indies senior team is scheduled to begin a tour of Pakistan on November 6.

At a press conference to announce the Stanford SuperStar team -- which includes several big-name West Indies players -- Lloyd made it clear that a player's priority is to the West Indies team but sources say Stanford is not happy with that arrangement.

Several other Stanford legends -- former players paid handsomely to evangelise the tournament -- have found themselves grappling with conflict-of-interest questions.

Andy Roberts (who chairs the Stanford 20/20 board) and Gordon Greenidge sit on the West Indies selection panel.

Ian Bishop and Desmond Haynes are on the Stanford board and also sit on the influential cricket committee that is charged with advising the WICB on all aspects of West Indies cricket development.

There is also a question about whether Stanford has reneged on an agreement to finance the WICB's high-performance cricket development plan which was prepared by head coach Bennett King.

According to an "aide memoir" signed between Stanford and WICB president Ken Gordon, Stanford agreed to spend $2 million to sponsor the program in the first instance with an option to extend such sponsorship for the full four year period of the development programme.

However, in a recent interview with CaribbeanCricket.com, Gordon said Stanford has pulled out of the deal, effectively stalling the plan.

** Editor's note: CaribbeanCricket.com is trying to make contact with Stanford representatives to clarify the issues. This story will be updated as necessary.