The organizers of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) have proposed that the entire tournament be played in Trinidad and Tobago and have made a proposal in this regard to the Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley, according to reports.
“Only last week did Rowley say that his government was ‘cautiously optimistic’ about hosting the tournament, subject to clearance from the country’s health authorities,” said Cricketnext on Wednesday.
As part of the proposal, the CPL has said it would want to host the entire tournament, comprising 34 matches, at Trinidad’s two main grounds, the Queen’s Park Oval, in Port-of-Spain, the capital, and the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, according to Cricketnext.
It said there are chances of double headers every day at 10:00 am and 6:00 pm local time, meaning the tournament would be played over 25 days rather than last year’s 39.
The tournament was initially scheduled to take place from Aug. 19 to Sept. 26.
According to Cricketnext, tournament officials hope that overseas players will be willing to participate, with the first round of international signings expected to be announced next week, and remain optimistic that some fans will be able to attend games while adhering to social-distancing protocols.
The six teams that are part of the CPL will all stay in the same hotel and “being treated as a single household,” Cricketnext said.
“Within that household, teams would be broken down into ‘clusters’ of four or five, where which social distancing could be relaxed,” it said.
Pete Russell, CPL’s chief operating officer, has said that officials will hold a virtual meeting with cabinet ministers on Thursday, Jun. 4, in order to talk through details such as possible quarantine periods upon arrival in Trinidad, health protocols, and any assurances that need to be given., according to Cricketnext.
“We’re ready to play,” Russell told ESPNcricinfo. “If you get the second wave that everyone hopes won’t come, we’d be back to square one. But the only other thing that will derail us is the government not allowing us to play for safety reasons. It’s just a case of getting the green light from them.”
