The upcoming International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s T20 World Cup, which is set to bowl off in the Caribbean and the USA on June 1, will receive the full support of Caricom in logistics, security, and other areas.
The revelation was made at the conclusion of the 46th Meeting of the Conference of Caricom Heads of Government on Wednesday last by Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell.
Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell
Citing the logistical support that Cricket West Indies (CWI) might need, Mitchell noted that Caricom was all too happy to ensure the Region was represented well.
“We’ve got the T20 World Cup in the Region. It is a wonderful opportunity again, for us to showcase to the world, our cricket, our wonderful hospitality, our wonderful creativity. But we would also appreciate mass events like cricket come with challenges,” Mitchell shared.
He went on to affirm, “The case of the community, the logistics of movements and so, Heads have pledged their unwavering support to working with Cricket West Indies to make sure we do all that we need to do institutionally, regulatory, and legally to facilitate the movement of fans, players and support staff to ensure that we have the smooth running of our Cricket World Cup.”
Mitchell went on to zero in on the aspect of security during the global event, noting that Caricom would not be taking this for granted.
The West Indies men will be looking to capture a record third World Cup title at home
On the matter of security, Mitchell stated, “Mass events also pose significant public safety and security risks and in the current geopolitical tensions that we’re facing in the world, we are very keenly aware that we need to ensure that we do not take this event for granted from a public safety and security perspective.”
“So, we’re working with all our regional partners, all of our international partners to ensure we do all that is necessary to ensure the Cricket World Cup T20 in the Caribbean is a success, is a safe event and that we can use this as a platform to begin to rebuild T20 cricket, One-Day cricket and as Sir Clive Lloyd [put it] the ultimate examination of cricket – Test cricket,” the Grenadian Prime Minister went on to state.
The 2024 Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup is set for June 1-29, with the much-anticipated event bowling off in Texas, USA and Providence, Guyana, with the United States taking on Canada and West Indies battling Papua New Guinea respectively at the Grand Prairie Stadium and the Guyana National Stadium, Providence.
Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago will host one semi-final each, while Barbados will host the grand finale on June 29 at the Kensington Oval.