Trinidad Poised To Split From The West Indies?

Trinidad Poised To Split From The West Indies?

Happier times in Trinidad when the West Indies beat England earlier this year.

©REUTERS/Philip Brown (TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO SPORT CRICKET) Picture Supplied by Action Images

West Indies cricket could be thrown further into turmoil as Trinidad and Tobago have threatened to split and compete as a separate nation.

The West Indies have competed as a region for over a century, however the recent contract disputes have lead to many of the West Indian players becoming disenchanted with the region and preferring to play as separate nations.

Trinidad and Tobago Chief Executive Forbes Persaud has encouraged the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) to go it alone if the disputes were to continue.

He told the Trinidad and Tobago Express:

“My personal view (is) if the trend continues with the manner in which West Indies cricket is being administered, the board (TTCB) should go on its own and compete as Trinidad and Tobago, just as is in football.

“If something is not done to have cricket administration at the West Indies level properly restructured, I believe we will have no choice but to think about playing as an individual territory on the international scene.”

Persaud insisted that these views were merely his personal opinions and there have been no formal discussion within the TTCB yet, however he did admit that a number of members also shared his views.

Cricket is the only sport in which West Indies still compete as a region, and Persaud described the potential split would be the ‘end of a legacy’.

A recent contracts dispute has thrown cricket in the region into crisis with a number of major players withdrawing from a series against Bangladesh.

Bangladesh beat a makeshift West Indian side 2-0 to seal their first ever overseas Test series victory.

© Cricket World 2009

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