Russell gives notice to Jamaica Tallawahs
Caribbean Life, May 8-14, 2020 33
Tough times ahead for
Cricket West Indies By Nelson A. King
By Azad Ali
Jamaican businessman Chris
Dehring is worried over the
financial future of Cricket West
Indies (CWI), in light of the
impending economic struggles
caused by the global coronavirus
pandemic.
Dehering, who was the CEO
of the ICC Cricket World Cup
2007 (which took place in the
West Indies) was speaking on
the Barbados-based Mason and
Guest radio program last week
said; “ I don’t know the details
of Cricket West Indies financial
structure now. They have accumulated
debt. They are dependable
on television rights and
everything looks good on paper
if you’ve signed television rights
agreement.”
Dehring, who is currently
CEO of Ready TV and also one of
the founders of another Jamaica
based media outlet, Sports-
Max, is worried about CWI’s
lack of monetary reserves, as a
major television companies face
the reality of financial shortfalls.
“There is a strong chance
that the world economy is not
Chris Dehring.
Associated Press / Collin Reid, File
going to recover for the next
12-18 months. If there is a global
pandemic that has impacted
the global economy, that causes
that revenue to be diminished
significantly,” he said.
He said Cricket West Indies
will come under lots of stress
and strain. “ I can’t see how
they’ll escape that. The Boards
of England, Australia, and India
(will) have reserves. That’s the
benefits of having massive prior
years of television right signings.”
Days after Chris Gayle hit
out at former West Indies
teammate, Ramnaresh Sarwan
for his alleged ouster
from Jamaica Tallawahs, West
Indies talisman allrounder
Andre Russell says that the
Caribbean Premier League
(CPL) 2020 will be his last
with the Tallawahs, claiming
that franchise is the “weirdest”
he has ever played in,
according to reports.
India.com reported last
Thursday that the big-hitting
Russell has raised questions
over the professionalism and
lack of communication in
the Tallawahs, despite being
appointed their captain in
2018 following his return from
doping ban.
“I am a guy who plays to
win,” said Russell on Instagram.
“I’ve won 13 (T20)
championships. If I’m picking
a friend, I believe in that
friend. But the way the Tallawahs
went about things, I was
trying to reach them on the
day of the draft: no reply.”
Russell’s frustration stems
from the 2018 season during
which, he alleged, the franchise
ignored his recommendations
for the players draft,
according to India.com.
It said Russell had an off
CPL 2019 during which he
managed just 99 runs and six
wickets from five matches.
“I felt like a first-class player
that just made his debut one
game ago. ‘Your opinion is
not valuable’. That’s how I was
treated. Even when I ask questions:
‘who you guys planning
on retaining? Who are you
guys planning on buying’? I
don’t get any answers. So, I
just leave it,” Russell said.
“I have another year’s contract
with the Tallawahs. I’m
going to play and try to win
because that’s all I play for,”
he added. “But this will be my
last, because I’ve been getting
mixed up with all this s**t
that is happening, and I can’t
be playing cricket where I’m
not comfortable.”
Meanwhile, the Tallawahs
has dismissed Gayle’s claim of
being pushed aside by Sarwan
from the team.
“Mr. Gayle gave several reasons
for the decision that was
made not to retain him in the
Tallawahs. However, the truth
is that this decision was made
collectively by the ownership
and management team, which
did not include Mr. Ramnaresh
Sarwan, and based purely on
business and cricketing reasoning,”
said the Tallawahs in
a statement.
“The Tallawahs had a very
disappointing season in CPL
2019, where the team finished
last in the tournament,” it
added. “The ownership and
management team has exercised
its rights in the selection
of players for CPL 2020 for the
betterment of the team.”
Andre Russell.
Associated Press/Andres Leighton
LET US BE YOUR
"DESIGNATED
REPRESENTATIVE "
AND
HAVE THE RESPONSIBLE INSURANCE
COMPANY PAY TO REPAIR YOUR CAR TO
FACTORY SPECIFICATIONS AND 'DELIVER
IT TO YOU WITH THAT NEW CAR
SHOWROOM LOOK WHILE DRIVING AN
IMMEDIATE REPLACEMENT CAR RENTAL
A short drive thru the Battery Tunnel from Manhattan
/India.com
/India.com