Sir Viv Backs Inclusion Of CWI Head At ICC Meeting

Former West Indies captain, Sir Vivian Richards, believes that a sought after meeting with the game’s international governing body the ICC (International Cricket Council) by CARICOM, should include members of Cricket West Indies and in particular, President Dave Cameron.
CARICOM requested a meeting with the ICC during the Commonwealth Heads of Government in London this week to discuss the governance crisis within Cricket West Indies only to be told by ICC that their representatives would be busy preparing for their quarterly board meetings in Kolkata from April 21-26.
ICC also indicated that they would not entertain any discussions with CARICOM without Cameron’s presence.
Sir Viv, who scored 8,540 runs in 121 Tests, said he believes an amicable solution can be found through talks.
“It’s good to talk, it’s better to negotiate than to fight so I think that if they can meet along that particular line and to address certain issues and problematic things we would have had in terms of administrative wise and the folks who are not happy with the way it is being run, you never know, talking could bring some [benefits] and as I said, it would be of utter importance that every one of the parties meet because there is no way you can have one without the other and discuss all the issues face to face,” he said.
The Antiguan, who also racked up 6,721 runs in One Day Internationals (ODI), however believes that CARICOM’s intentions are genuine.
“They are not in anyway, in my opinion, looking to run the board or anything of that particular factor. They’re just looking basically to address some of the problems which we have in terms of administration wise and things like that. We saw what happened in Guyana so no government fraction should get involved and we see that at the highest level even with FIFA and so forth, so the same applies here to the governments in the region,” Sir Viv said.
“If you are looking to have that meeting then I don’t see a problem with the president being there as everyone can discuss the various issues,” he added.
Following a two-day Intercessional in Haiti last February, CARICOM adopted legal advice which confirmed it could challenge CWI’s right, as a private entity, to manage the public good of West Indies cricket.
And the regional nation grouping said it would request a meeting with the ICC to convey what it termed the “desperate urgency” of reforming the governance structure in the Caribbean.
In a recent letter to CARICOM, the ICC said it was willing to meet in November during the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean but insisted Cameron needed to be present.