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The ECB put out an advertisement for three vacant positions, pace-bowling coach, spin-bowling coach and batting coach, in December.  Interviews were conducted in recent weeks after applications closed last month.

Ambrose, who made known that he had applied for the post a few weeks ago, revealed that he had been contacted but unfortunately was not selected for the post.

“I got a call from one of the panellists yesterday [Thursday] to inform me that I was unsuccessful in my bid. The interview went very well. There were four panellists and everything went according to plan and I thought I did a wonderful job, so I was pretty excited. I thought I probably would have made it but I am not going to really worry too much about it. To have made the shortlist is a step in the right direction obviously,” Ambrose told the Antigua Observer.

With the Ashes on the horizon, Ambrose, who has taken 128 wickets against Australia (fourth-best all-time, with the best economy rate among the top 5), admits that he was hoping that his previously dominant performances down under might have weighed in his favour.

“I was expecting to be part of the squad considering the World T20 coming up and, of course, the Ashes. You know that when England play Australia in the Ashes, it’s a big one and I thought that maybe because of my tremendous success in Australia that it would have, at least, given me an extra step, but it didn’t work out and I am quite happy with how everything went. In life, we get some good news and some not so good, and you learn to accept it and move on,” he said.

The 57-year-old previously worked as West Indies bowling consultant between 2014 and 2016.  He was replaced by Roddy Estwick.

According to the reports, should Ambrose get the job, he would be required to work with England’s emerging pace bowlers as well as with the senior team and England A squads.

“Yes, I have applied,” Ambrose told Sportsmax.TV, saying he was confident about getting the job.
“Anything I do or try to get involved with I am confident to try to do the things that I can.”

He said it was always his plan to give back to the sport of cricket that has given him so much during his illustrious career.

The 57-year-old former Antigua and Barbuda and West Indies bowler was employed by the West Indies in 2016 during their successful T20 World Cup campaign and has worked as mentor and coach for the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League.

Ambrose represented the West Indies between 1988 and 2000 taking 405 Test wickets at a healthy average of 20.99, the lowest average among fast bowlers who have taken more than 400 wickets.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) and the England Cricket Board (ECB) have been trying to find a work-around so as not to delay the start of the three-Test series set to begin on June 4 at the Kia Oval.

COVID-19 cases are expected to peak in the United Kingdom in June, making it almost a certainty that the start of the English domestic season will be delayed.

The Caribbean, if it continues to remain relatively COVID-19 free, could become third-party hosts for other series, reportedly offering to provide the venues for England’s home fixtures against Pakistan in July.

There is also the possibility that the tour of England could be put off until September, after the West Indies host New Zealand in three One-Day Internationals and three Twenty20 Internationals from July 8 to July 19 and after South Africa visit for two Tests and five T20Is scheduled for July 23-August 16.

A delay could also mean that the Hero Caribbean Premier League could be pushed back all the way until December.

The decision comes only after CWI medical and cricket-related representatives and advisors have been involved in detailed discussions with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), and their own medical and public health advisers over the past few weeks.

These discussions involved the local and international logistics and protocols, which are already being put in place to minimize risk and optimize the health and safety of all concerned.  CWI has also received and reviewed detailed plans for players and staff to be kept in a bio-secure environment for the duration of the tour, with all matches being played “behind closed doors”.

The CWI will now be awaiting the England Cricket Board who is to get approval from the UK Government sometime over the next few days.

CWI’s management is also now in the process of seeking to put all of the approvals and logistics in place within the Caribbean, including seeking permission from the various governments to facilitate the movement of players and support staff, using private charter planes and conducting medical screenings and individual COVID-19 testing for all members of the touring party.

“I would like to thank the CWI management, the Medical Advisory Committee, and the Financial Strategic Advisory Committee for their detailed and timely presentations given to the Board meeting,” said CWI President Ricky Skerritt.

“In addition to our approval in principle of the proposed Test Tour of England, we made some significant financial management decisions that will be announced and implemented in due course.  The great detail to which the Board engaged in these matters is testimony to their urgency and importance, but it meant that we had to defer a few agenda items until next Wednesday (June 3), when we have scheduled to reconvene”.

Most of Thursday’s lengthy meeting focused on discussing the initial short-term recommendations from the Financial Strategy Advisory Committee (FSAC), a special purpose committee that was put in place by CWI President Ricky Skerritt on April 2, 2020.

The committee comprised a joint membership of Directors and Executive Management, all with significant financial management expertise, chaired by JCA President, Wilford “Billy” Heaven.

The Board agreed to the committee’s business continuity plan of action, for how CWI would have to operate in order to survive its cash flow crisis, in the context of the debilitating economic uncertainties of the global pandemic COVID-19.

The CWI CEO, in an interview with the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC), said he is increasingly confident that the CWI board will greenlight the tour.

Initially set to get underway in June, the tour was postponed because of the Coronavirus COVID 19. However, the England Cricket Board and CWI began discussions at the start of the month over the possibility of starting the Test series in July.

Grave told Sportsmax.TV that the tour would only go ahead if the ECB could guarantee the safety of its players and support staff. However, in subsequent discussions, it was suggested that the players would fly to England by charter and be housed in a bio-secure environment for up to four weeks before the series could begin.

Last week, during the ongoing discussions, Grave said the two sides were making progress after which the CWI CEO said he now believed that the ECB now believed that they had a ‘robust and safe’ plan to ensure that the series could go ahead.

“From where we sit at the moment, based on the information we have, based on the fact that every day there are less and less cases in the UK, everyone is getting increasingly confident that the tour will happen at some point,” Grave told CMC

“Our board meeting is on May 28. If the tour has to take place, by the start of June we would need to have the [CWI] board approval and support by then in order to get the charter flight logistics in place and select the players.”

If the CWI agrees, West Indies players and support staff would likely depart the Caribbean on June 8.

Both boards have been in discussions since the start of the month intent on charting a pathway to the West Indies travelling to England for three Tests in July.

Initially scheduled for June, the tour was been postponed because of fears over player safety caused by the spread of the Coronavirus COVID-19.

However, late last week, CWI notified 30 players that they should be prepared to travel and play in England in July if it is decided that the tour would go ahead. It was also revealed that further discussions were set to take place on Monday.

CWI CEO Johnny Grave confirmed to Sportsmax.TV Tuesday that those Monday talks went well.

“The ECB is confident that they can deliver a safe plan for bio-secure behind closed doors cricket that will meet the UK Government guidelines and will therefore likely secure their board's approval,” Grave told Sportsmax.TV today.

“We will have further meetings and discussions this week with the ECB as we try and plan for the Test Tour taking place this summer in an environment where the number-one priority is the health and safety of all players and staff."

During an interview on Sportsnation Live on Nationwide Radio in Jamaica on Saturday, Grave reiterated that safety was the primary concern of the CWI.

“We would have to be absolutely certain that our players and support staff would be in a safe environment in order for us to play cricket,” he said while explaining the conditions under which the team would travel and play in the UK.

“What it means at this stage is that we would use charter flights to first collect players in the Caribbean and then to make our way across the Atlantic. We wouldn’t be on aircraft with any other passengers. There would be private charters for our players and team.

“Then once we land in the UK we would undergo a two-week quarantine period, which would be at a cricket facility, so the players would have the opportunity to play and train. They would be the only ones in that secure environment.”

Grave said the hotel staff, ground staff and other personnel would be tested regularly and would have to remain on-site for the duration. “Once they enter that bio-secure environment no one would be allowed to come or go, so they’d be in lockdown within a cricket venue with a hotel on-site,” he said.

According to Grave, the CWI medical and support staff have determined that the Windies would need at least four weeks to get the players into the condition that they need to be to face England in the Test matches.

Following a two-year inquiry, the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) reported racism, sexism, elitism and classism as “widespread and deep-rooted” within the sport in England and Wales.

ECB chair Richard Thompson unreservedly apologised when the findings were published in June, making the pledge in a letter to ICEC counterpart Cindy Butts: “We will use this moment to reset cricket.”

After 44 key recommendations were advanced, the ECB undertook a three-month consultation process to agree on a path of reforms and will later on today set out its actions to make cricket more inclusive.

In the interim, the ECB has acted on one of the ICEC’s proposals by announcing the England women’s team would receive the same match fees as the men following a thrilling dual Ashes summer.

A fresh £2million investment has also been ring-fenced over the next two and a half years for programmes aimed at engaging black and south Asian communities as well as state-educated children.

Ebony Rainford-Brent’s African Caribbean Engagement Programme, the South Asian Cricket Academy and the MCC Foundation join long-term partners Chance to Shine and Lord’s Taverners in sharing the funding.

Among other suggestions put forward by the ICEC are overall equal average pay at domestic level by 2029 and at international level by 2030 and a new regulatory body within 12 months, independent of the ECB.

Butts said the report highlighted the “stark reality that cricket is not a game for everyone” but expressed confidence in the ECB’s leadership to bring about the change required.

Among those to give evidence to the ICEC’s investigation was England men’s Test captain Ben Stokes, who read out a heartfelt and personally prepared statement on the day of the report’s publication.

“I am Ben Stokes; born in New Zealand, a state-educated pupil who dropped out of school at 16 with one GCSE in PE,” he said.

“I needed help with the spelling and grammar in this speech and I am currently sitting here as the England men’s Test captain.

“It is clear there is so much more the game has to do and as players we really want to be a part of that to ensure this is truly a sport for everyone.”

Heather Knight, the England women’s captain, said: “It’s been really sad to hear about anyone that’s not felt welcome in our game – nobody should be made to feel unwelcome in our sport.

“This is a really important step for cricket, and cricket – having done this report – can really lead the way in terms of being more equitable, more diverse and more inclusive.”

The series, which consists of three Test matches, was scheduled to begin in London on June 4, followed by matches at Edgbaston and Lord's starting on 12 and 25 June respectively.  As the world battles to contain the pandemic, playing the series in the heavily hit England looked increasingly unlikely.

Initially, it had been suggested that the West Indies would be willing to step in and host the series, but Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave was quick to paint the suggestion as a highly unlikely scenario.

With all professional halted until May 28, the ECB has had to reckon with the prospect of starting the season later than expected.

The West Indies could have the option of playing the series in two potential windows, either side of their home Test series against South Africa at the end of July.  The series could be squeezed in at the start of that month or in September, which would allow England to play their three-Test series against Pakistan as planned in August.

The England and Wales Cricket Board has announced payments to Heather Knight’s side are being brought into line with those made to Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and their team-mates in the wake of record crowds and increased viewing figures.

The increase will take effect immediately, starting with this week’s Vitality IT20 series against Sri Lanka.

ECB chief executive officer Richard Gould said: “This summer’s thrilling Metro Bank Women’s Ashes series demonstrated how women’s cricket is continuing to grow at pace in this country, with record attendances and TV viewing.

“Growing the women’s and girls’ game is a key priority for us and in recent years we have considerably increased investment both in building a domestic women’s structure to produce the players of the future and in increasing player rewards.

“In the years ahead, we will continue to invest ahead of revenues. We are currently considering all the recommendations made by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, but equalising match fees is one immediate step we are pleased to make now.

“We all want cricket to be the team sport of choice for female athletes and – with the investments we are making and increasingly-lucrative opportunities around the world – we are seeing cricketers become some of the highest earning female athletes in UK team sports.

“However, we know there is still much further to go as we ultimately strive for equality across the game.

“As we continue to grow women’s cricket, we will continue to focus on making considered investments that stretch far-and-wide across the women’s cricket structures, delivering a thriving, profitable and future-proofed game.”

A total of 110,00 people watched the drawn summer series, which saw Australia retain the Ashes in front of crowds of 19,527 at Edgbaston, 20,328 at the Kia Oval and 21,610 at Lord’s which set successive new records for a home England Women bilateral fixture, while 23,207 tickets were sold for the five days of the Trent Bridge Test.

Broadcast viewing figures of 5.3 million, in addition to 47 million video views, were double those in 2019.

England skipper Knight said: “It’s really important that we continue to drive the women’s game forward and it’s fantastic to see equal match fees for England Women and England Men.

“The direction of travel for the women’s game has always been the most important thing, creating a sustainable product that people want to watch and play and I’m sure this will make cricket an increasingly-attractive sport to girls and young women as we continue to grow the game.

“I would also like to thank the PCA and England Women’s Player Partnership for their support in representing the players and the growth of the professional game.”

The ECB currently funds 80 professional women’s domestic cricketers in addition to its 18 England Women’s centrally-contracted players.

Last year, the governing body announced a £3.5milion increase in funding for the women’s regional game to run until the end of 2024, while the salary pot per team was raised to £250,000, meaning the average salary for a women’s regional cricketer will be £25,000.

During the West Indies tour of England in July, players took the knee in support of the global movement for equality for people of colour. However, that has since ended with subsequent tours triggering the ire of the former West Indies fast bowler.

"Now that the West Indies team has gone home, that doesn't mean that you still shouldn't be respecting the message and exactly what it stands for," Holding said.

He explained that the movement had generated global momentum and awareness. The ECB should do what it can to help maintain it.

"So for Pakistan and England not to then take that signal - because you are not doing anything other than going down on one knee - you are not chanting anything, you are not saying anything, all you are doing is making a signal to keep the awareness going.”

Meanwhile, the ECB responded to the SkySports commentator that while they respect his opinion, they have chosen to go in the direction of a more sustainable form of action.

"Many of cricket’s teams, both domestic and international, took the knee in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter Movement for their opening games, with the Men's Test Team continuing throughout the entire series with the West Indies,” the ECB statement said.

"Our response to the Black Lives Matter debate has been to view the issue alongside the whole inclusion and diversity space, to ensure that long-term and sustainable change happens for all communities who are not treated equally. We remain committed to this philosophy.

"Our refreshed inclusion and diversity strategy, published at the start of the West Indies Series, commits to several comprehensive initiatives that focus on eliminating discrimination from all areas of cricket.

"England's men’s and women’s players all remain committed to using their reach and influence to keep promoting inclusion and diversity in perpetuity, for the betterment of cricket and sport. We understand the importance of symbolism, and its power to keep an issue high on the agenda, our goal is to ensure we deliver both reach and change.”

However, believes that change will require more than just education.

"It is not a matter of which one is more important. Education is very important - I said that when I had my talk on Sky - but you can't just say that education is the most important thing and do nothing else. We have still got to keep the awareness going.

“I don’t care about any politics behind the Black Lives Matter – I just care about those three words. Black Lives Matter. And it’s time for the world to accept that black lives matter and move the entire world towards that agreement and that realisation because it is obvious that we need to do something in this world if we are going to get equality for all races and all nations.”

For that to happen, the players would have to go through rigid isolation and testing protocols, as well as austere social distancing measures.

Of course, the proposal will include officials as well as media and the England skipper thinks it can work.

“I’m optimistic about it. It would be a real shame if it doesn’t happen. The public are desperate for some live sport and the guys are missing it,” said Root.
“The players would be sectioned off in one part of the hotel and would be in isolation together. There would be no interaction with the media, the TV crews or even the opposition when off the pitch.

“We would have separate lunchrooms. It would have a different feel to it but it’s probably manageable. Hopefully that is the case.”

According to the proposals, the three Tests would be played at ‘bio-secure’ venues behind closed doors.

Those venues, the proposal points out, are those that have hotels on location, like Manchester, Southampton and Headingly.

Root, while optimistic, is cognizant of the fact that Cricket West Indies (CWI) would have to take the risk.

In response, West Indies Test captain Jason Holder, has said his side would have to be certain of their safety before saying yes to such a proposal.

“This thing has been really, really serious as we all know and has claimed quite a few lives throughout the world and that’s the last thing any of us would really want,” said Holder.

“I think we’ve got to play the safety card first before we can even think about resuming our normal lives.”

In the meantime, CWI Chief Executive, Johnny Grave, has said the England Cricket Board’s proposals were being considered but that first all the moving parts would have to be understood.
England will be desperate to get back the Wisden Trophy they lost to the West Indies last year for the first time in a decade.

This, according to Skerritt, doesn’t mean there will be no changes because a technical committee had been vetting retainer contracts in lieu of them coming to an end in a few months.

“There has been no move in that direction at this time. We are actually in the process right now, that is the technical team is in the process of reviewing retainer contracts [because] the retainer contracts come to an end within the next couple of months. So, it is being looked at as normal, but I expect that we will have to do a bit of a check on where we are and what we can afford to do going forward,” he said in an interview with the Good Morning JoJo Sports Show in Antigua.

Skerritt’s comments do not mean that the CWI is in great financial standing despite the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on sport worldwide, and in fact, the president has pointed to other areas where there might be an impact in short order.

“CWI is facing a rapidly changing world environment for sports and with no sports taking place, with revenues related to broadcast rights and sponsorship and so on, gate receipts, all of those revenues are important, so every sporting organisation around the world is facing issues. Those that were already facing cash flow issues or other organizational issues will just have it tougher and CWI is one of those,” said Skerritt.

English male cricketers have collectively donated £500,000, the women have agreed pay cuts for the next three months to help the English Cricket Board deal with the fallout from a lack of play, while the NBA is proposing a 50 per cent pay cut while games are suspended.

The Pakistani was found guilty by the England and Wales Cricket Board of “cajoling and pressurising” former Essex team-mate Mervyn Westfield into accepting cash in return for trying to concede a set number of runs in an over.

“We regard Danish Kaneria as a grave danger to the game of cricket and we must take every appropriate step to protect our game from his corrupt activities,” the ECB’s disciplinary panel said in a statement.

The panel found Kaneria guilty on two charges – of knowingly inducing and encouraging Westfield not to perform on his own merits in the Pro 40 match against Durham in 2009, and of bringing the game into disrepute.

It concluded that Kaneria acted as a recruiter for Anu Bhatt, who was described in the ECB’s summary as “an Indian businessman who, prior to November 2007, had come to the notice of the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit of the International Cricket Council as allegedly being heavily involved in illegal betting”.

Kaneria, who played 61 Tests and remains Pakistan’s fourth-highest Test wicket-taker, put pressure on Westfield “well knowing that he was young and vulnerable” to concede a minimum of 12 runs in his first over at Chester-le-Street in return for £6,000, according to the panel, which also described the evidence given by Kaneria during the four-day hearing in London as “plainly lies”.

He made subsequent appeals against his lifetime ban, but all were dismissed.

The teams were due to contest a three-Test series from June but it was postponed until July. If it is decided that the tour will go head it will most likely be played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, whether the tour occurs is contingent on guarantees that the West Indies players and management will be safe.

According to Andrew Mason, the Barbados-based cricket commentator and host of the Mason and Guest talk show, he has confirmed that the players were contacted and that Trinidadian fast bowler Shannon Gabriel was among them, having recovered from surgery and is now fit to play again.

In addition to Gabriel, Mason reports, others called include Darren Bravo, Joshua Da Silva, Anderson Phillips and Shannon Gabriel.

Sunil Ambris, Preston McSween, Alzarri Joseph, Jahmar Hamilton and Rahkeem Cornwall; John Campbell, Paul Palmer, Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Markino Mindley, Shimron Hetmyer, Veerasammy Permaul and Keemo Paul; Jason Holder, Kraigg Braithwaite, Shane Moseley, Kemar Roach, Chemar Holder, Keon Harding, Shane Dowrich, Shai Hope, Kyle Mayers, Roston Chase, Sharmarh Brooks, and Jamal Warrican.

CWI CEO Johnny Grave seemed to have confirmed the news during an interview on the Cricket Show, saying that the West Indies would want a minimum of four weeks in the UK to prepare for the first Test.

Two of those weeks, he said, could be in quarantine if the squad was based at a place where it could train.

He said he would need to be 100 per cent sure that travelling to England didn't put any player at unnecessary risk.

"We've had, as you can imagine, lots of conversations individually and - as of the start of this month - we started really a much wider discussion with the ECB over what a tour might look like," said Grave.

Simmons has been self-isolating since and will only be permitted to re-join the team on Thursday, July 2, if he returns two negative Covid-19 tests.

However, his decision to leave the bio-secure location has raised some concerns and questions over whether the head coach unilaterally decided to leave the facility where the team has been preparing for the coming three-Test series beginning July 8.

Grave assured that Simmons received permission from the Chief Medical Officers of Cricket West Indies and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

“Yes, he left to go to his father-in-law's funeral on Friday and is now going through the re-entry process having had his whole exit and entry approved and managed by the medical teams,” Grave said.

In Simmons’ absence, assistant coaches Roddy Estwick and Rayon Griffith will oversee the Windies four-day, first-class fixture that starts on Monday.

Floyd Reifer will be the batting coach

The peak summer month of August has been controversially ring-fenced for the third season of The Hundred, which still polarises opinion among cricket fans and is exclusively played in the UK.

Reports last month suggested its structure was being considered and the theory gained traction with the news Sanjay Patel, mastermind and managing director of The Hundred, would leave the ECB in September.

But Gould argued the distinction between the 100-ball competition and its T20 rivals abroad is a selling point and admitted Sky and the BBC, the ECB’s broadcast partners, are champions of The Hundred.

“In a crowded market, it is a point of difference,” Gould said on the Final Word podcast. “The format is not something that’s on my agenda, in this regard.

“Sky have been really supportive in driving it forward, it’s given us that point of difference and everyone in the cricketing world has heard of The Hundred, that’s a good thing.

“As long as people are talking about the game, I’m happy.

“There is always going to be arguments with competition, as to what we do and where we go next but we will be utterly pragmatic and more focused on progressive improvement and we will do it in a collaborative manner where everybody can feel involved.”

According to a report from Worcestershire chair Fanos Hira, the competition made a £9million loss in its first two seasons, a figure disputed by the ECB which says a profit of £11.8m was achieved.

Gould and ECB chair Richard Thompson were once prominent critics when The Hundred was first broached during their stints in identical roles at Surrey but the pair’s stance has softened appreciably.

But while Gould sees substantial upsides to The Hundred, he believes there is room for improvement amid a proliferation of domestic white-ball competitions from all over the world fighting for attention.

“You see the competition we’re in globally now and every country needs to have a super primetime white-ball domestic competition,” Gould said.

“We have invested very heavily in The Hundred over a number of years, both emotionally and financially.

“We are not going to take The Hundred out, we are going to make it bigger and better. We’re going to make the whole of cricket bigger and better, that is our aim.

“I think the level of investment that has gone into The Hundred has delivered really good returns in terms of a new audience. The broadcasters really enjoy it, the BBC have put it on free-to-air.”

Gould, who has already opened the door for multi-year central contracts and increased match fees for England players, accepted salaries in The Hundred may need to go up to compete with its market rivals.

Currently, the highest bracket for the men in The Hundred is £125,000 while for women it is £31,250.

“Salaries will need to go up, not just for The Hundred but also for international cricket because we can see there is a global market for players,” Gould added.

“The difficulty for the ECB and our revenues is we have so many mouths to feed whereas the franchise tournaments can just take the cream off the top, they don’t get charged for the players, they’re very efficient models at getting money back into the players’ pockets but they’re not funding the pathway.

“We’re always going to fund the pathway but having a really strong and healthy pathway is the secret to long-term success, you’ve got to have the players.”

Missing from the squad is spinner Anisa Mohammed who declined the invitation to join the squad while Kaysia Schultz is the only newcomer.

The touring party, who will all be tested for COVID-19 this week, is scheduled to fly to England on a private charter on August 30.

The West Indies Women’s squad will live, train and play in a “bio-secure” environment during the four weeks of the tour, as part of the comprehensive medical and operations plans to ensure player and staff safety which will restrict movement in and out of the venues.

Fourteen players of the touring party were part of the West Indies Women’s squad that participated at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in Australia, earlier this year.

“It is with pleasure that we are able once again to have our West Indies Women's team involved at the International level. This tour to England gives our players a great opportunity,” said Lead Selector for Women’s and Girls Cricket, Ann Browne-John.

“The larger 18-member squad also gives an opportunity to have young developing players involved, like the two players from Guyana, left-arm bowler Kaysia Shultz and all-rounder Shabika Gajnabi. It also gives the opportunity to the young Trinidadian off-spinner Karishma Ramharack to get some international experience.”

CWI’s Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams said CWI was grateful for the opportunity provided by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

“CWI is pleased to be restarting its international women’s program with a tour to England, where the standard of women’s cricket has grown tremendously. We thank the ECB for their invitation and the added opportunity to travel with a larger squad affords us the chance to introduce a few younger players to this level of the game, and fast track their development,” he said.

“With so much uncertainty surrounding cricket scheduling currently, this is a timely opportunity for our women to resume competitive cricket at the highest level.”

 West Indies Women are scheduled to arrive in Derby on August 31 and will be based in at the Derbyshire Cricket Ground for the duration of the tour.

Full squad: Stafanie Taylor, Afy Fletcher, Hayley Matthews, Aaliyah Alleyne,  Cherry-Ann Fraser, Natasha McLean, Shemaine Campbelle, Shabika Gajnabi, Chedean Nation, Britney Cooper, Sheneta Grimmond, Karishma Ramharack, Shamilia Connell,  Chinelle Henry, Kaysia Schultz, Deandra Dottin, Lee Ann Kirby and Shakera Selman.

Tour schedule:

Monday, September 21:            1st Vitality IT20, England v West Indies

 Wednesday, September 23:     2nd Vitality IT20, England v West Indies

Saturday, September 26:          3rd Vitality IT20, England v West Indies

Monday, September 28:           4th Vitality IT20, England v West Indies

Wednesday, September 30:      5th Vitality IT20, England v West Indies

Holder led the West Indies to a surprise 2-1 victory over the then number one team in the world during the series played in the Caribbean in early 2019 and took hold of the Wisden Trophy.

However, during a press conference in the UK on Wednesday, a day after the team arrived for their three-Test series, Holder was quick to dismiss any notion that his team were favourites to win the series that will be played behind closed doors.

“So many things have changed from then to now, conditions being one of them. To call us favourites would be wrong. England are a higher-ranked side than us and I think they are favourites in their back yard,” said Holder.

“There is lots to play for and lots to motivate you as a group. Guys are pumped up for the opportunity and the only sad thing is that we won’t be able to play in front of the crowds.”

Holder believes his players should cherish the opportunity to play notwithstanding recent developments wherein the players are facing a 50 per cent temporary pay cut imposed by a cash-strapped Cricket West Indies.

 “I see so many leagues in jeopardy and the World T20 as well -- so the mere fact we are getting an opportunity to play cricket I think we should cherish that,” Holder said.

“Many organisations are taking pay cuts and we have suddenly got our opportunity now to make some money so we have a lot of things to be thankful for and I think we just have to relish the opportunity and grab it with both hands.”

The West Indies will spend the next four weeks preparing for the series that begins with the first Test at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on July 8.

The West Indies were scheduled to start a three-Test duel with England at T/he Oval, Edgbaston, and Lord’s on June 4 until the rapid spread of COVID-19 across Europe threatened to derail those plans.

The ECB and Cricket West Indies have been trying to come up with solutions to keep what is expected to be a lucrative series alive.

According to reports, the ECB is stepping up plans to resume cricket in June, but with no spectators, but that broadcasting would still go ahead since that was safer and that is where the majority of money to be earned from the series would be in any case.

The approach, ECB Director of Special Projects, Steve Elworthy, explained that any approach involving re-starting cricket in England would mean creating a sterile environment, safe for players and staff.