CPL 2021 to be staged in St. Kitts and Nevis

Cricket – England v West Indies – World Twenty20 cricket tournament final
West Indies Dwayne Bravo celebrates taking the wicket of England’s Moeen Ali. Bravo also plays for the Trinbago Knight Riders.
REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

The Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has been given the green light for the 2021 edition of the tournament to be played in its entirety at Warner Park, St. Kitts from Aug. 28 with fans finally being allowed back in the stadium.

The CPL hosted in a “bio-secure’ bubble and behind closed doors in Trinidad with the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) creating history with an unbeaten fifth title.

Players were also restricted to the bio-secure bubble in Trinidad & Tobago, but this year things will be different with CPL putting itself on course towards having the first fully cricket tournament during the Covid-19 pandemic.

CPL Chief Executive Officer, Pete Russell confirmed that St. Kitts and Nevis, home of the St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots franchise, will host all matches in the 2021 CPL and that fans will be allowed in to see the games live with the stadium being allowed to accommodate 50 percent capacity.

He also revealed that the CPL draft will take place towards the end of May and hinted at some “big moves” by some players in the off-season.

Jonel Powell, St. Kitts and Nevis minister of Education, Youth, Sports and Culture explained that players will be required to adhere to all the necessary quarantine requirements on entry and once they have satisfied the quarantine period and they have a negative test for Covid-19 thereafter, they will be allowed to integrate into the public.