Since 1930, Sabina Park has hosted a total of 101 international matches. Only Trinidad & Tobago’s Queen’s Park Oval with 139 and Barbados’ Kensington Oval with 123 have hosted more.
Sabina Park hasn’t hosted international cricket since the West Indies took on Ireland in three ODIs in January last year.
Taking it a step further, the ground hasn’t hosted any regional cricket since 2019. That year was also the last time Sabina Park hosted a Caribbean Premier League (CPL) game.
In an appearance on the Mason & Guest radio show on Tuesday, former Jamaica and West Indies off spinner, Nehemiah Perry, said that while local cricket is being played at the ground from time to time, the lack of international matches is concerning.
“We still have our local cricket and we’re having some Dream 11 T10 games coming up there but the real issue is that there is no international cricket being played at Sabina Park,” Perry said.
“I remember the days gone when we were talking about a Test series coming to the Caribbean, there were some grounds that you knew were going to get games like Sabina Park, Kensington Oval, Queen’s Park Oval etc. For about two years now, we haven’t had any international cricket at Sabina Park. We also haven’t had any regional cricket there for some time now,” he added.
As of late, the ground has been used mainly as a venue for hosting parties as well as football matches. For the last few years, it has served as the host for finals in competitions like the Jamaica Premier League, Manning Cup and ISSA Champions Cup to name a few.
“It has been turned into a place of parties and football. We need income to maintain the field and Kingston Cricket Club because that club is really the owner of Sabina Park and the JCA owns the stands,” he said.
“When you don’t get international cricket, there’s no revenue coming in from the ground because there’s no advertising. Members of the Kingston Cricket Club are leaving because there’s nothing happening at Sabina Park and I’m very concerned,” he added.
With the T20 World Cup coming to the West Indies next year, Senior Manager of Cricket West Indies, Roland Holder, neither confirmed nor denied whether or not Jamaica have made a bid to host any matches at the tournament.
He did, however, say that “every venue is under consideration.”
“I believe the bids are all in and a determination is being made as we speak as to who gets what and the various packages etc. I’m not intimately involved in the World Cup so I can’t say too much about it, apart from that it’s next year,” Holder said.