Board slams Lucky for distributing report

Prime Minister Keith Mitchell has been handed a copy of the Lucky Report © Cricinfo

"The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) is "appalled" that Justice Anthony Lucky has distributed the Sponsorship Negotiation Review Committee (SNRC) report to Prime Minister Keith Mitchell of Grenada." This was the response yesterday of the governing body for the game in the region to the handing over of the controversial report on the contract the WICB signed with telecommunications outfit, Digicel.

After a meeting yesterday, Lucky handed Mitchell a copy of the report, which he is expected to pass on to CARICOM Chairman, Prime Minister Kenny Anthony. However, the WICB made it clear they were less than impressed by this development.

"While understanding the interest that the West Indian people must have in the findings of the report," the release indicated," it is unfortunate that this type of distribution should be made in advance of the directors of the WICB having had an opportunity to consider the document." This is particularly so, the WICB statement said, since it is now public knowledge that a special meeting of the executive of the board of directors has been called for September 4.

Prime Minister Mitchell, chairman of the CARICOM's Prime Ministerial sub-committee on cricket, described the meeting as fruitful, saying that he and Justice Lucky discussed a number of areas of importance to West Indies cricket. At the meeting, Mitchell told Lucky that the special Prime Minister's group formed to look at cricket at the last CARICOM Heads meeting would be convening a meeting shortly.

Mitchell has been at the centre of several attempts to solve the long running impasse between the West Indies Cricket Board and the West Indies Players Association. He was especially critical of the WICB for its decision to choose a second string squad for the recent tour of Sri Lanka.