Recent comments by former ICC Chairman Greg Barclay suggesting the West Indies should disband were both controversial and disrespectful. However, they touched on an uncomfortable truth. Over the last 15 months, several prominent voices—including Cricket West Indies (CWI) CEO Chris Dehring, former Trinidad and Tobago CWI Director Baldath Mahabir, and myself as a former CWI Communications Officer—have publicly discussed the fragile state of West Indies cricket. The broken global cricket economy poses a severe threat to the region's survival.
Beyond Barclay’s remarks, two quiet yet significant challenges jeopardize West Indies cricket: the Barbados Cricket Association’s (BCA) resistance to the Wehby Governance Reform Report and the ongoing exodus of Barbados-born or heritage players to the England cricket system.
Governance Reform Stalemate
At a recent CWI press conference, President Dr. Kishore Shallow addressed the opposition from the BCA, clarifying that this resistance does not reflect Barbados as a whole. Dr. Shallow told Barbados media representative Andrew Mason:
“What I try to do, Andrew, and I advise you to do the same—say Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) and not Barbados. The Honourable Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, has openly supported governance reform. In fact, she has said we should adopt the Wehby Report wholesale. So, it is not a representation of Barbados; it’s the BCA and those individuals.”
Dr. Shallow’s point is well-supported. During her 2023 Frank Worrell Memorial Lecture, Prime Minister Mottley emphatically stated:
“You cannot have the benefit of all of these reports from different parts of society and the region, and then ignore them. The first issue we need to get right is governance. The longer we take to do it, the worse the results will be.”
Prime Minister Mottley echoed this sentiment at the 2024 CARICOM Cricket Symposium in Trinidad. Yet the BCA remains steadfast in its opposition. Is this resistance rooted in genuine concerns, or is it a continuation of their antagonistic stance against CWI leadership? Notably, the BCA under Conde Riley has consistently opposed CWI presidents Ricky Skerrit and Dr. Shallow over the past six years. Transparency from the BCA is overdue.
The English Talent Drain
The second issue—the migration of Barbados-born talent to England—underscores systemic failures within the Barbados cricket framework. Players such as Jacob Bethell, Jofra Archer, Chris Jordan, and Phil Salt highlight a troubling trend. No other region in the West Indies cricket ecosystem is losing players to their oldest cricketing rival at this scale.
While the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) archaic regulations—which classify players as “overseas” if they represent another country—play a role, the BCA must address its inability to retain talent. The English Football Association, under FIFA law, does not impose similar restrictions. For instance, Jamaica’s national football team recruits England-based players of Jamaican descent, such as Michail Antonio, Bobby Reid, and Ethan Pinnock, without jeopardizing their domestic careers. Cricket should follow suit.
CWI must demand accountability from the BCA regarding their efforts to curb this talent drain. Are they taking proactive steps to retain players, or are they passively enabling England to poach talent? Without intervention, the next Caribbean player to debut for England is likely to be another Bajan—a damning indictment of Barbados cricket.
A Call to Action
The BCA’s opposition to governance reform and its inability to address the talent exodus pose twin threats to West Indies cricket. These issues demand urgent attention. If left unresolved, Barbados risks becoming the single most significant internal obstacle to the West Indies cricket system’s stability and growth.
Colin Benjamin is a current CONCACAF Venue Press Officer and served as West Indies Communications Officer from 2019 to 2023.