 Yeah, back on the sportsman zone and we'll begin with cricket 14 years after hosting the T20 World Cup for the first time ever. The Caribbean will again welcome the ICC tournament to the region in 2024. Cricket West Indies on Friday, in conjunction with the International Cricket Council, announced the seven Caribbean countries that will join U.S. States, New York, Florida and Dallas as hosts. They are Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Guyana, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago. To further discuss the latest developments is Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave. Johnny, welcome to the sportsman zone. It's a pleasure to have you for the first time since we've moved into this new space. I hope you are well. I am here. Thank you. On my way to Guyana for the CPL finals. So I've made it halfway and I'm in Trinidad, but yeah, looking forward to a blockbuster weekend of sport. Sounding amazing. Lance and I quite envy you to be honest. We wish we were on our way to Guyana as well for a weekend of carnival and CPL. It doesn't get much better than that. Probably will get better for the Cricket World Cup next year. Even Caribbean territory is selected to be part of the hosting of the event. Can you break down for us in terms of how the process went, the details of the process and how you came to this final decision? Yeah, look, it's a landmark day for us really announcing and confirming those seven host countries is a really important part of the build up and planning to this huge event that we're hosting. We started obviously when we were awarded the co-hosting with the United States of America for this event well over a year ago and the planning has never really stopped. So we've invited all of the governments of the 10 countries that have internationally accredited venues to submit bids and that process of evaluation along with numerous site visits by Cricket West Indies personnel along with those of the ICC. We've been in long and interesting discussions with all the host governments. Seven of our governments put forward compelling bids so much so that all seven have been awarded the opportunity to host matches. So it's a really exciting moment for us and we can't wait really now to the next big announcement which will be the match schedule and then getting on sale with tickets and inviting everyone to flock to the Caribbean in particular to watch this huge event. Yeah Johnny a number of reports coming out well first of all it's set to be a massive event. It has been described as the biggest T20 World Cup ever some 20 teams. There will be 55 matches over the course of the tournament from the 4th to the 30th of June in 2024. I've read a number of reports suggesting that Kensington Oval is the front runner to host the final of the tournament. I've also seen a report that suggested the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad and Tobago is among the contenders to host the final as well. Is there anything that you can give us in that regard in terms of where particular matches will be and specifically the final? I can't give you that exclusive. I'm afraid we're still in discussions with our accounts. Parts of the ICC. But certainly we what we have identified is Guyana Barbados and Trinidad as the three venues that will host those latter stages of semifinals and finals. We hope that within about two months from now we will confirm the exact tournament structure every single match every single time slot. And that really coincides with the ICC board meetings that are taking place around the 50 over World Cup final in mid November. So once the ICC board approved that match schedule will be making an announcement immediately I would imagine following that final in a meta bad in mid November when the 50 over World Cup is completed. So are you suggesting that in a report that we've seen that says the final will be at Kensington Oval or the Brian Lara Cricket Academy is premature. It is as I said Guyana is also in the mix for those latter stages. So between Guyana Trinidad and Barbados they will be hosting those final three matches. We're not going to have a semi final final at the same venue. We've agreed with the ICC that there will be separate semi final venues in a separate venue for the final. Yeah. Johnny the Caribbean hosted 2007 50 over Cricket World Cup and the 2010 T20 World Cup. How much of that experience from all of the hosting territories would have supported them being impressive hosts for this 2024 T20 World Cup. Yeah. Look I think we've got a huge experience of hosting ICC events as well as regularly hosting international cricket and tournaments like the CPL that's currently ongoing. And I think that does put us in a very strong position. We very successfully hosted in recent times the 2018 Women's T20 World Cup and more recently in January 2022 the ICC under 19 men's cricket World Cup. So we have enormous support from all stakeholders but particularly those governments who fulfill all of the obligations that ICC require in order to host events. And yeah the bids that we've submitted through to the ICC have some really important development opportunities as well in terms of upgrading our stadiums and particularly up grading our practice facilities to the level that they need to be to accommodate 20 teams who will all need to need to practice and prepare for this really important World Cup. Yeah. In recent months there were some stories which were refuted that the USA leg of this tournament could have been in some trouble but they were constantly refuted by the ICC and organizers on a whole. Having said that, is there anything impressive that you can tell us about Dallas, Florida and New York, the venues that will be hosting matches in the T20 World Cup? Yeah look I think it's fair to say we probably spent more time trying to identify the venues in the US as we have in the Caribbean because we're blessed with as I said 10 stadiums here that are regularly hosting international cricket and major events whereas the US we've obviously been to the Broward Stadium in Lorde Hill, Florida a number of times and the most recently taking India T20s there so we know that that stadium in Broward County very very well. Grand Prairie is a former minor league baseball ground that was repurposed and redeveloped for Major League cricket that took place in in in both Dallas and Morrisville this summer in July. So Dallas has now hosted top grade franchise cricket in the T20 formats yet to host an international. So those two two grounds I guess are reasonably well known and and have hosted cricket before the stadium in New York is is is not a stadium at the moment it's a park in NASA County and it's had lots of experience hosting major events it's the venue for the 2025 Ryder Cup and yeah that that ground is going to be built between now and June it's going to be completely temporary build looking at 34,000 seats and we have been looking from East Coast throughout the United States and the West Coast and trying to find opportunities and venues for cricket and these are the three that have come through that process so it's exciting that we'll be going to Dallas, Florida and New York and the early part of the tournament before it all moves down to the Caribbean that will exclusively host the super eight stages the semifinals and the final yeah the ICC CEO Jeff Aladise was quoted in in a report today that he expects the New York venue to be stunning that's that's the word that's where he used it's certainly very ambitious and the plans that we've been working on yeah will be you know something that we don't think we've ever seen before we're going to have drop in wickets a completely relayed outfield and then purpose built stands so four giant stands along with four superstructures that will that will sort of host the teams in terms of dressing rooms and media facilities as well as you know the VIP corporate suites and premium seating that clearly in close proximity to New York and Manhattan will no doubt be very very popular as we look to host six matches in New York so first time for New York to be hosting international cricket at this caliber and again a big statement for ICC in terms of trying to grow the sport into new markets and we're hoping as a as a game that will have further good news to come with cricket identified as a sport for the twenty twenty eight Los Angeles Olympic Games. Yeah I know Johnny that St. Kitson Nevis Grenada and Jamaica did not submit bids to host the T twenty World Cup next year. I think most glaringly the the non submission of a bid from Jamaica a regional powerhouse in cricket. First of all as the cricket was in the CEO. How disappointed are you that a bid did not come from Jamaica. Yeah I'm not going to lie. I'm hugely disappointed. You know it's as you say Jamaica is the biggest country in the region. It's subpoena park is an iconic ground. It desperately in need of of improvements and upgrades that will maintain its status as an international venue. So to lose that opportunity to make those upgrades to subpoena park on the back of hosting this huge event and for Jamaica government not to put forward any submission with them. Yeah very disappointing. We were in very close dialogue with St. Kitson Nevis and also Grenada who have obviously hosted lots of international cricket recently. We've continued to take international cricket to Jamaica over the years and yeah very disappointed that subpoena park isn't didn't even have the opportunity to host matches. Yeah. Has cricket West Indies I mean reached out to the Jamaica Cricket Association or the Jamaican government in any way to get an idea of the challenges and why a bid was not submitted. Yeah we certainly tried. I mean we extended the deadline three times hoping that Jamaica would be able to submit a bid. We know it was and we're told it was being discussed at cabinet but we've never had any feedback as to why bid wasn't coming. You know this is probably the biggest event sporting event that the the West Indies will ever host. It's going to be watched by hundreds of millions of people around the world. We're going to own that month in June in terms of sporting calendar. I think the tournament budget alone is going to be in excess of 100 million US dollars so it's a it's a massive economic opportunity for the host countries and for the region to promote itself for tourism and economic development to the world. So it's it's disappointing that we didn't get a bid from Jamaica but at the same time you know we're delighted that we've got in some respects it made our decision making easier because the seven bids that we did receive have all got games and no one's no one's too disappointed. Well that is a fact. Can you give us an idea of what the marketing of this event will be like now. Know that the host nations have been decided between now and the World Cup. What will the marketing look like. The next sort of big landmark for us is is announcing the match schedule and that's what all the fans want to know. They want to know where their teams are going to be playing and how they can come and watch and follow and experience particularly for us in the Caribbean. You know what we believe is the best place to watch and place play cricket in the world. So as soon as that match schedule is signed off and as again that's another big decision that the ICC board will sign off on in mid November along with the tournament budget. We would then hope that by the end of November we are announcing that match schedule so almost immediately once the 50 Overworld Cup in India is completed will announce the match schedule and then very quickly be on sale with all the opportunities for fans in the West Indies and fans from all around the world to come and watch games. Yeah quickly before we go to break Johnny there was a time maybe a decade ago where it was my understanding that the cricket West Indies or at the time it was West Indies cricket board had been mandated by the ICC to be the governing body that would assist with the promotion and development of cricket in the Americas like the USA, Canada and you know the South American countries that play ICC lower level cricket. Does that mandate still exist? It's not a specific mandate obviously we're the only full member in the ICC Americas region and we take that role very seriously. Growing the sport in this time zone is a major component of our strategic plan because it's effectively the only way that we're going to be able to compete economically with our counterparts around the world who are enjoying you know billions of dollars of revenue. So it's a really important responsibility that we have to grow the sport in the ICC Americas region both North in terms of the USA and Canada and also as you say the growing sport throughout Central America and South America which is growing both from a men's and women's perspective. So hopefully this is a really important opportunity and platform for cricket West Indies in particular as part of the sort of the legacy of this event to ensure that we're doing all we can to get cricket growing throughout the ICC Americas region but we don't have a specific mandate but it's certainly a one that is the full member in the region we take very seriously. Yeah sounds good Johnny hold it right there we go to a break when we return we'll be chatting about the super 50 that's coming up