Franchises yes, but other areas need upgrading too

20121220tonycozierWest Indies cricket’s hopeful new optimism was clear in the pictures on the pages of Friday’s press.

The smiles across the faces of West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president Dave Cameron and his West Indies Players Association (WIPA) counterpart, Wavell Hinds, were as wide and as sparkling as the Caribbean Sea.

They were shaking hands after signing a new, long delayed memorandum of understanding and collective bargaining agreement (MOU/CBA) following a board meeting in Barbados at which the innovative franchise team system for the upcoming, expanded first-class season was the main topic.

Clive Lloyd, as esteemed a captain and cricketer as the game has known, was shown