Cricket West Indies’ Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Chris Dehring expects regional cricket’s attempt to adapt to inevitable shifts in the sport’s ecosystem will lead to a decline in the frequency with which teams such as the Leeward Islands and Windward Islands compete as multinational outfits. Dehring highlighted that the introduction of cricket at the Pan American Games and its reintroduction to the Olympics, where only sovereign nations can compete, will see an increase in the number of games contested by individual territories.
“If you think about Pan American Games qualifications every two years and Olympic Games qualifications thrown into the mix, you can see a different cadence of cricket taking place in the Caribbean over the next five, 10, 15, or 20 years,” Dehring told the Mason and Guest panel.
“And of course, individual countries are who play in those tournaments. So it won't necessarily be Leewards and Windwards. It will be St. Vincent, Dominica, Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago competing to qualify now for a bigger prize.”
He, however, insists the changing events should not be feared but rather embraced. Dehring hopes the inherent nationalism attached to participating in these tournaments will push regional governments to pour more resources into the sport.