DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (CMC) — The winners of the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup will be awarded US$1.6 million, while the runners-up will take home US$800,000, the ICC announced Sunday.
The two losing semi-finalists will be rewarded a prize of US$400,000 each. Overall, a sum of US$5.6 million will be allocated for the tournament which will be shared by the 16 participating teams.
West Indies are the defending champions after lifting the 2016 crown.
The ICC said it will also continue to award a bonus amount for every win during the Super 12 stage of the tournament, as was the case during the 2016 edition of the tournament. The victors during all the 30 matches during the Super 12 stage will be given US $40,000 — amounting to a total pot of US $1.2 million.
As the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup draws ever closer, some observers are still in disbelief at the squad Cricket West Indies selectors have chosen to defend the title the West Indies won in 2016.
Among them is Sir Vivian Richards, a man considered by many to be the greatest batsman of all time and one of the most destructive.
Richards, who played on the West Indies teams that won the Prudential World Cup in 1975 and 1979, said he still cannot believe that former West Indies captain Jason Holder, was not among the 15-man squad named for the world cup.
“I felt maybe it could have been a misprint and then hearing the news as well you think you were not hearing right at that particular time,” Sir Vivian told the Antigua Observer.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (CMC) — Trinidadian Joel Wilson will be the only West Indian member of the panel of 16 umpires and four match referees that will oversee matches in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men's Twenty20 World Cup from October 17 to November 14 in the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
The International Cricket Council (ICC), the sport's world governing body, announced yesterday the match officials' appointments for the qualifying round of matches and the group stage of the global showpiece.
“We are delighted to be able to call on some of the world's top officials for the T20 World Cup with a group of 16 umpires and four match referees,” ICC senior manager for umpires and referees Adrian Griffith said.
The ICC said the appointment of the umpires and referees meant that for the first time since the beginning of the novel coronavirus pandemic, there will be neutral umpires for all matches.
With just a few weeks to go before the start of the ICC Men’s Twenty20 (T20) World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, the debate continues regarding the inclusion and subsequent involvement of Chris Gayle in the West Indies set-up.
The regional side will be looking to defend the title they last won in 2016, and the Phil Simmons-coached side has recalled several players that were part of that winning 2016 and 2012 side, which was led by Daren Sammy.
Seven players, including veterans Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Lendl Simmons, captain Kieron Pollard, and Andre Russell are expected to once again be on show. However, while Pollard, Bravo, Simmons, and a fit-again Russell seem sure picks, West Indies fast-bowling legend Sir Curtly Ambrose doesn’t believe that Gayle’s inclusion in the final eleven is guaranteed.
“For me, Gayle is definitely not an automatic choice for starting,” Sir Curtly said on the Mason and Guest radio talk show in Barbados. “When you look at his exploits over the last 18 months, he has struggled not only for the West Indies, but other T20 franchises. The few home series we played, he hasn’t had any scores of significance.”
Barbados all-rounder Dominic Drakes is to join the Chennai Super Kings as a replacement for England’s Sam Curran, who is out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with a back injury.
The 23-year-old hero for 2021 Caribbean Premier League champions, St Kitts and Nevis Patriots will reunite with his CPL captain Dwayne Bravo ahead of their last league match against the Punjab Kings on Thursday, October 7.
Drakes took 16 wickets in 11 matches for the SKN Patriots during the CPL season and won the tournament with his bat when he scored an unbeaten 48 from 24 balls in the final against St Lucia Kings and was named the Player of the Match.
In 19 T20s so far, he has picked 20 wickets and has scored 153 runs at a strike rate of 159.37.
