Saint Lucian cricket fans were left heartbroken by the news that the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground (DSCG) will not host the West Indies Senior Men’s or Women’s Cricket Teams this year. While regional and franchise cricket fixtures, such as the popular Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League tournament, will still be played at the ground, cricket at the highest level will be absent from the venue. This is despite the ground being rated by the International Cricket Council as the best in the region following last year’s T20 World Cup.
Among those stunned by the news of no fixtures at the cricket stadium is veteran West Indies cricket commentator Dr Joseph Reds Perreira who said the venue has “one of the best pitches in the world, and it would have been ideal for a great spectacle”.
Perreira, who has called Saint Lucia home for decades, expressed disappointment with the venue choices made by the regional cricket authorities, stressing the need for a more equitable distribution of matches across all venues in the region, particularly premier locations like the DSCG.
He pointed out that other venues, such as Warner Park in St Kitts and Nevis, which recently hosted the entire Bangladesh Women’s series against the West Indies, were somehow favoured over Saint Lucia’s ground—a decision he described as an eye-opener.
“I’m disappointed with some of the venues that have been chosen,” Perreira said. “With all due respect to St Kitts, they are getting three T20s at Basseterre, and you ask yourself why choose a venue for the Australia versus West Indies series, where it can only accommodate 9 000 people?”
“If you look at the situation regarding the Pakistan tour, Trinidad and Tobago will host the three ODIs at the Brian Lara Academy. Trinidad will also be hosting the CWI Regional T20, which is entirely different from the CPL sponsorship. And you have to ask whether Saint Lucia has been unfairly overlooked. If they are going with Australia in St Kitts, I think Cricket West Indies could have given the three Pakistan games to Saint Lucia. The Saint Lucian public has been pretty badly treated.”
Since the fixtures announcement, questions have arisen in both political and sporting circles regarding the rationale behind the expenditure at the DSCG before last year’s T20 World Cup. In April 2024, the Government of Saint Lucia guaranteed a demand installment loan of $80 million from 1st National Bank to the National Lotteries Authority (NLA).
According to Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Philip J. Pierre, this loan was intended to fund “preparatory work for the hosting of the T20 Cricket World Cup and the NLA’s islandwide youth and sports infrastructure programme”, which included works at the DSCG.
When asked whether the exclusion of the DSCG for matches this year suggests that the $80 million investment was a mistake, Perreira said: “I think the money had to be spent on the stadium in preparation for the ICC World Cup, based on what was decided when the ICC team visited Saint Lucia.”
“The ICC identified certain requirements, and action was taken to ensure those needs were met. The West Indies board is aware of the upgrades to Saint Lucia, and one would have thought they would have allocated some matches to Saint Lucia, not just because the venue was upgraded, but because it is a quality venue. It has one of the best pitches in the world, and it would have been ideal for a great spectacle.”
Very unfair to us