Guyana, CPL still haggling behind the scenes

Guyana may have been selected to host the finals of the HERO Caribbean Premier League but the principals are still negotiating behind the scenes.

Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman, hinted Tuesday, that while plans to host the semi-finals and final are more than likely, there are sticking points.

He alluded to differences between what the CPL are requesting for the right to host the tournament’s finale and what the country is willing to pay.

“The initial request was in excess of US$2M, and we are still to confirm, but the last figure I know of was on or about US$1.5M,” revealed Trotman, who acknowledged that there are tangible benefits to be had from hosting the games in the South American.

“What I think was attractive to the government is that the CPL organization or the organizers extended to us the offer of hosting the final, semi-finals and four games here and in our Jubilee year, we believe that it would be a good filling to the celebrations,” he said.

“We believe that having cricket here and having international stars in Guyana is just the festive mood that would be a good injection to our economy.”

Meanwhile, the minister revealed that the Government of Guyana is to settle the US$500,000 debt owed to the organizers of the CPL from the previous tournament.

“We believe that in the interest of cricket; in the interest of good relations, in the interest of the future of the sport, that we should come to an amicable resolution,” said Trotman.

“Through interventions made from overseas, a group of ministers met with a CPL team late last year and we managed to arrive at what we believe is a settlement even though there is no documentation of US$500,000 being owed.” (SportsMax)