CASTRIES, St Lucia, CMC – The Hero Caribbean Premier League will stage six matches in the United States during the upcoming season, a landmark move that will see the premier regional Twenty20 tournament unveiled in the Americas for the first time.
Matches are set for July and are expected to be played in Florida at the Central Broward Regional Park Stadium.
CPL chief executive Damien O’Donohoe described the move as a “massive boost” for the cricket market in the United States.
“This project has been in discussion for many months and we are grateful to the ICC for supporting this move which enables us to step up our planning and open up opportunities for the cricket-hungry American public,” he said.
“I would also like to acknowledge the ongoing support of Dave Cameron and our partners in the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) in this process. The participation of the ICC Americas team in the recent Nagico Super 50 has proven to be a hugely important step forward and we are committed to providing more opportunities for players and that experience will certainly count for those six ICC Americas players who will be selected in this year’s Draft.
He added: “The CPL has already had a positive impact in the Caribbean and we are excited about bringing top quality cricket to the USA. We are committed to developing the next generation of cricketers and we believe that by exposing the best talent from across the Caribbean and the Americas region in the CPL, we can inspire a new generation of cricketers in the USA.”
ICC Head of Global Development, Tim Anderson, said the decision to play CPL games in the United States was a “positive step forward for all cricket followers in the US.”
“We are also delighted that a number of development activities will take place around the matches, ensuring that the expertise and experience of the CPL players, coaches and officials contributes to the exciting growth of the game in the USA.”
Since its inception in 2013, all CPL matches have been played exclusively in the Caribbean among the six franchises attached to various countries.
Trinbago Knight Riders, formerly Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel, are the reigning champions after defeat Barbados Tridents in last year’s final.
