STICK OR MOVE!

Jamaican cricketers Rovman Powell, Vitel Lawes and John Campbell are among West Indies players who have two weeks to decide whether to accept reduced contracts offered by Cricket West Indies (CWI). Last week, the regional governing body announced that international retainer contracts would see fees cut by 25 per cent as part of a series of measures to address CWI’s current financial challenges. CWI CEO, Jamaica’s Chris Dehring, told ESPN Cricinfo on Thursday, that the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) agreed to the changes following “multiple discussions” which started from 2025. Dehring revealed that the international players were directly addressed at a meeting last Wednesday. “We held a Zoom call involving CWI, WIPA and both male and female players. There were over 96 participants in that video conference, where we outlined the plans, explained the situation, and answered questions.

The CWI president [Kishore Shallow], the director of cricket [Miles Bascombe] and I were on that call along with the WIPA president [Wavell Hinds] and secretary [Wayne Lewis],” he said. Although the list hasn’t been made public, it’s understood former T20 Captain Powell, spinner Lawes and opening batsmen Campbell, who are currently part of the Windies squad for the ongoing tour of India, have all been offered retainer contracts along with Windies red ball captain Roston Chase, white ball captain Shai Hope and pacers Shamar Joseph and Alzarri Joseph. However, Dehring admits there is no guarantee the players will accept the offer, with the option of franchise cricket on the table. “WIPA has agreed with us on the domestic side, and we informed them what we’re able to afford on the international side. So really that is now up to individual players to determine whether or not they would…