Editorial | The CPL and more

Like with Jamaica’s failure to bid to host matches in next year’s T20 World Cup, the island’s cricket fans are disappointed that the owners of the Jamaica Tallawahs have returned the franchise to the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), the owners of the tournament.

So, next year, the Tallawahs, which was owned by Guyana-born businessman Kris Persaud, will be replaced in the CPL by an Antigua-based franchise, apparently with the same owners.

With the Tallawahs’ management saying that they were cornered into the decision because of a lack of Jamaican government support, not surprisingly, the Holness administration is feeling the brunt of people’s chagrin.

“This retrograde approach is not serving the game, fans and the private investors’ interests, which is very disappointing and nonsensical,” said Wavell Hinds, the president of the West Indies Players Association and a deputy general secretary of the Opposition People’s National Party. “It is full time cricket, and sports in general, is coordinated and administered through a sound policy with practical and applicable procedures to support execution.”

Mr Hinds’ political association notwithstanding, his sentiment is not unique. Donavan Bennett, a vice-president of the Jamaica Cricket Association, said the Government was “culpable”; and Rovman Powell, the Jamaican captain of the West Indies T20 team, called for “a conversation” between the Jamaican Government and Cricket West Indies (CWI), the sports governing body, on the issue. The Government perhaps needs to hear some home truths.

GROSS DERELICTION

This newspaper, however, withholds its determination of the matter, except to accuse the Government of gross dereliction by failing to articulate a coherent policy on sports, especially with regard to cricket. Which The Gleaner, in October, urged it to do in the aftermath of the T20 World Cup fiasco.

While Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, who has the portfolio for sport, entertainment, culture and gender affairs, is in the direct line of fire, the issues are likely to be bigger than her, involving questions of fiscal management and broad economic philosophy. If that is indeed the case, the finance minister, Nigel Clarke, and the prime minister would have been critical intervener, particularly on the question of where public good and private (sector) interest diverge.

In that respect, there is an important fact to note – one that is probably also at the back of the minds of policymakers. The CPL is essentially a private, for-profit operation, which operates with the imprimatur of the CWI, although its financial arrangements with the regional body remains opaque.

It is not insignificant that the Tallawahs, ostensibly a Jamaica-based franchise, has not played a match in the island since 2019, presumably because it was uneconomic to do so. The Jamaican Government was not delivering the economic support the franchise holders hoped for. Instead, venues in South Florida were treated as ‘home’ grounds.

The impasse, therefore, is not new, although the specifics of the requests are not known, except for Mr Hinds’ suggestion in an interview with this newspaper that the ask for the coming season was US$400,000, or half of the cost of hosting Tallawahs matches in Jamaica. That is over J$60 million, which is money the Government will probably argue it could allocate to more urgent priorities.

SHORT-SIGHTED PERSPECTIVE

On the other hand, cricket supporters, and sport marketers generally, will perhaps insist that that is a short-sighted perspective on an investment in sports, which ignores its social value and economic returns. Mr Hinds, for instance, claimed that in playing in Jamaica and its broader association with the island, Tallawahs have an economic impact of US$12.5 million, which is nearly J$2 billion. The basis of Mr Hinds’ analysis is, however, unclear.

In any event, according to Jefferson Miller, the former CEO of the franchise, all the other teams received support, “whether in kind or financial, from their host governments. “The Tallawahs were the only ones who were not receiving that kind of support,” he said.

There are three potential takeaways from that assertion: the Jamaican Government was unconvinced the returns were sufficient for what was being asked; that, philosophically, the Government does not believe that it should put taxpayers’ money in private ventures, with no direct returns to the Treasury; or it just could not be afforded. Or maybe a combination of all the conditions.

When the Government turned down the opportunity to bid to be a host of the T20 World Cup (which it said would require an outlay of J$420 million), Ms Grange said the expected return did not justify the investment.

“In our cost/benefit analysis with stakeholders, we … considered the economic, social and development impact, including the potential tourism-related impact and attendant industry benefits using year-over-year economic modelling, reconciled against current tourism performance,” the minister said. The sums did not work out.

The Government was no doubt also troubled by the overestimation of Jamaica’s return from being a host of the 2007 World Cup (60 overs a side), on whose preparation it spent US$100 million.

Ms Grange promised, instead, to invest J$100 million in grass-roots cricket over the next five years, which, on the face of it, is a piddling amount.

In October, The Gleaner suggested a big discussion on cricket. That dialogue remains relevant, including on the economics of the CPL and why franchise teams in the Caribbean need taxpayers’ help and the value the league brings to regional cricket.

In fact, Minister Grange might consider a major colloquium on sports, involving regional partners, which could be the basis for a serious, robust policy position on sports.