Cricket West Indies (CWI) Director from Barbados, Calvin Hope, believes the decision to sack the Richard Pybus-led coaching unit just weeks ahead of the 2019 ICC World Cup remains one of the ‘worst decisions made in recent times.’

In 2019, only a few weeks after replacing the Dave Cameron administration, the Ricky Skerritt-led regime controversially decided to sack Pybus and his entire coaching staff, with the ICC tournament less than a month away.

The move raised even more eyebrows at the time, because it came after the team had, very much against heavy odds, defeated a higher-ranked touring England 2-1 in a Test series, only weeks prior and tied top-ranked England 2-2 in a subsequent One Day International series.

On the back of several disappointing performances in recent months the decision has, on occasion, come back under the microscope and to the fore for discussion.

“It was not even bad, it was one of the worst decisions to have even been made in recent times in West Indies cricket,” Hope told the Mason and Guest radio program.

“Here you were, you had just begun to see some green shoots in the performance of a team.  It doesn’t matter who was in charge before or anything like that and it was basically a political decision,” he added.

The West Indies finished 9th at the ICC World after winning just 2 matches and losing 6.

Hope and Guyana’s Anand Sanasie were part of a two-man team that challenged Skerritt and vice-president Kishore Shallow for the leadership of CWI last year.

In confirming his withdrawal from the CWI presidential race that was supposed to have been held on Sunday, March 28, Calvin Hope says he is still committed to what is in the best interest of the administration of the sport across the region.

Guyanese businessman, Bissoondyal Singh, has been elected as president of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), following an election in Georgetown on Monday.

After being postponed last month, due to a number of contentious issues raised by the Essequibo Cricket Board (ECB), the process, conducted by recently appointed cricket ombudsman Kamal Ramkarran, reportedly went off without a hitch.

Other appointments will see Rabindranauth Saywack and Hilbert Foster serve as vice-presidents with Ronald Williams named secretary.  Former West Indies batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan has been named as the Chairman of the Senior Selectors, with current Cricket West Indies chief of selectors Roger Harper, also offered a position as a technocrat member with voting rights at executive meetings.

On Sunday, the CWI elections, which were slated to have Guyana’s Anand Sanasie and Barbados’ Calvin Hope challenge the incumbents Ricky Skerrit and Kishore Shallow, was postponed after a quorum could not be reached due to the absence of representatives from the Guyana and Barbados.

The elections have been re-set for April 11 but could now take on an entirely context following the GCB elections.  Sanasie previously held the post of general secretary but has through his attorney’s questioned both the legality of appointing the Ombudsman and elections themselves.

GCB full slate

President– Bissoondyal Singh

Vice-President– Hilbert Foster

Vice-President– Rabindranauth Saywack

Secretary– Ronald Williams

Assistant Secretary– Davteerth Anandjit

Treasurer– Pretipaul Jaigobin

Assistant Treasurer– Dr. Cecil Beharry

Public Relations Officer– Claude Raphael

Marketing Manager– Mohamed Baksh

Chairman of Competitions Committee– Shaun Massiah

Chairman of Senior Selectors– Ramnaresh Sarwan

Chairman of Junior Selectors– Andre Percival

Technocrat members with voting rights at executive meetings– Roger Harper and Anil Beharry.

This Sunday, March 28 is set for Cricket West Indies (CWI) to hold its 22nd Annual General Meeting in respect of the financial year ended September 30, 2020.

Due to the continuing travel-related effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the meeting will again take place virtually via video conference, as was done in a COVID-19 delayed meeting last year.

It is also the day when incumbent CWI President Ricky Skerritt and Vice President Dr. Kishore Shallow, will face challenges from Anand Sanasie of the Guyana Cricket Board and Calvin Hope of the Barbados Cricket Association, respectively, for the leadership of the organization over the next two-year term.

“All arrangements are in place for a productive Annual General Meeting,” President Skerritt said.

“This is not the first time that CWI is hosting a virtual AGM but it will be the first time that our leadership elections will take place virtually. We have everything in place to ensure a constructive and proper meeting.”

Shareholder members are slated to receive reports from the Cricket, Commercial and Finance Committees and for the first time, audited financial statements which will be consolidated to reflect CWI’s acquisition of and interest in the Coolidge Cricket Ground.

A copy of the 2019/20 audited financial statements and the Annual Report will be made available to all stakeholders via CWI’s website - http://www.windiescricket.com – from Monday, March 29.

The Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board are throwing their support for the current leadership of Cricket West Indies in the lead up to the virtual Annual General Meeting set for March 28.

Anand Sanasie says he will focus on improving team performance, strengthening regional cricket and revolutionizing grassroots cricket if he becomes the next president of Cricket West Indies at the next Annual General Meeting on March 29.

He also makes a case for improving women's cricket and expanding the sport into the North American market stating that now is the time for CWI to adopt more visionary policies.

In a lengthy statement released Wednesday night, Sanasie outlined the pillars of his manifesto as he formally announced his challenge to the presidency of Ricky Skerritt, who is in the latter stages of the role he won in March 2019 when he unseated then-incumbent Dave Cameron.

Sanasie, the long-standing secretary of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) said his decision to run for the presidency had been a year in the making.

“Over the past year, several directors of CWI along with many stakeholders across the region have reached out to me and sought to persuade me that I should consider serving as CWI President. Over the past months I have given it deep thought and consideration, discussed it with my family and the executives of the Guyana Cricket Board and today I consider it a distinct honour to announce that I will be contesting the CWI presidency,” Sanasie said in the statement.

“I am equally honoured to also announce that I will be contesting along with a stalwart of West Indies Cricket administration, my colleague Mr Calvin Hope of Barbados. Calvin and I have consulted widely across the region and out of these consultations we have developed a detailed manifesto which we will be unveiling in the coming weeks.”

He identified what he said are the key pillars of that manifesto.

“First we recognize that the performance of the West Indies Team serves as a barometer for the state of West Indies Cricket and as the only constant in the regional psyche. Therefore, the West Indies Team Performance is one central pillar,” he said.

“Secondly, regional cricket is what supplies and fortifies the West Indies Team. The territorial boards manage the production line of elite players for the West Indies teams. We believe that regional cricket requires greater investment from the CWI level and will implement a system of greater sponsorship share and larger annual subvention to each territorial board.”

He also stated that for there to be any sustained success of the West Indies team there needed to be a better grassroots programmes across the region.

“Thirdly, he said, regional cricket and ultimately the West Indies Team is only as strong as our grassroots cricket programmes. We believe that there needs to be the renewed focus, revitalization and a revolution in grassroots and school cricket all across the Caribbean.”

Sanasie also announced plans to return power to the territorial boards, increase support to women’s cricket and tap into the potential massive US market.

“We recognize, critically that over the past two years, there has been a systematic centralization of power and decision making and the ostracization and miniaturization of the territorial boards who are the shareholders of West Indies Cricket acting on behalf of the people of the Caribbean,” he said.

On Women’s cricket: “Our team will place renewed and heavier emphasis on the development of women’s cricket, focusing on girls’ cricket in the form of training, competition and tournaments, camps and succession planning. The West Indies Women’s Team must be consistently among the best in the world and we will ensure there is a comprehensive strategic measurable programme in place to achieve this.”

With regards to the tapping into the US, Sanasie said:

“Cricket globally is in the throes of rapid transformation from the perception of a lethargic past time to high energy, desirable entertainment. West Indies cricket and CWI must be at the forefront of this transformation.

“West Indies Cricket must also meaningfully and purposefully pursue expansion into the vast and lucrative North American market as a critical plank of augmenting and guaranteeing financial stability. This requires a planned strategic approach which our Team will pursue with the United States cricket authorities through partnership, collaboration and synergies. The US market is poised for transformative and explosive take-off and as the leading cricket governing body in this hemisphere, CWI can both partner with and offer support and guidance to Cricket USA for our mutual benefit.

It is not long before T20 cricket and other variations of the shorter game become staples on the US sporting and entertainment calendar.

It is now time for the executive leadership and governance of Cricket West Indies to transition from raw political horse-trading and a centralized hoarding of power to professional, visionary and astute policy-making based on equity, transparency, fairness and demonstrable competence.”