Tour to England the best way to kick-start the women's program, says CWI CEO Johnny Grave

Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave has said the women's team's tour to England is the perfect way to kick-start the women's program in the region.



Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic forced boards across the world to put all cricketing activity on hold, players have found it difficult to return to the field. While countries like England, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa have adopted a phased approach to bring their national teams back in action, border restrictions in West Indies, have meant the team has been inactive since the T20 World Cup earlier this year.



This led to concerns being raised about the need to keep the women's team active.



Luckily for CWI, once South Africa pulled out of their proposed tour to England, the England and Wales Cricket Board approached them to fill the vacant spot. Grave said England's invitation to play a five-match T20I series in Derby was the best way to get the team back on the field.



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The 18-member squad will undergo a three-week training camp in England before the series begins on September 21. Veteran off-spinner Anisa Mohammed is the only player who opted out of the tour.



“It’s similar to the men in as much as the ECB has said they understand the financial position that we are in and they have agreed to pick up the cost. So, this provides us with the best opportunity to restart our women’s program,” Grave told the Mason and Guest radio show.



“With the Guyana and Trinidad borders shut, getting the women together has been impossible. They haven’t been training since March, since they returned from the World T20 in Australia. This provides us with the opportunity to have three weeks of training camp prior to a couple of weeks’ worth of games. We are playing five international T20s. So, it really has kick-started our women’s program, which we have been trying to do.”