Still strong
CPL exec believes T20 tournament will remain popular after stars depart
Despite the impending retirement of some of the top players in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20, Head of Marketing Chris Watson believes the CPL will remain one of the premier franchise tournaments globally.
Jamaican powerhouse Andre Russell as well as Trinidadians Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard have been marquee players since the tournament’s inception in 2013, winning multiple titles over the 10 years. However, ahead of this year’s tournament, from August 29 to October 6, Russell and Pollard will be playing at ages 36 and 37, respectively
, while Dwayne Bravo approaches his 41st birthday. Jamaican and West Indies great Chris Gayle, who won three titles, opted out of the tournament in 2022 at age 42.
However, while speaking to the Jamaica Observer, Watson says the CPL has created a strong brand which will always attract support.
“We’re really thankful that our brand is the biggest party in sport and it’s all about people coming together, the excitement and the entertainment of the event as much as it is the cricket so we’re not sort of reliant on any particular, single player or big name player as much as some tournaments. The fact that we have top quality cricket but an incredible atmosphere and entertainment product is what brings everything together,” Watson said.
Watson, though, says he’s confident that the league will keep nurturing young talent, as it has successfully done in the past with players like Jamaica’s Rovman Powell, who is currently the West Indies T20 captain.
“We’re fortunate to give young and rising talent a platform to go and play cricket and showcase that around the world. There’s loads of stories and case studies where we’ve given people an opportunity, they’ve performed well at CPL and they’ve been picked up to play at tournaments around the world and to get picked up by their national side. If you look at Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran, they’ve gone on to do great things around the world, so we’ll continue to give young players a chance, tell their stories through our content and our platform that we have in terms of marketing and advertising and social media. Hopefully, we’ll also continue to develop cricket across the region and bring through these next superstars who can go round the world and do great things,” he added.
However, Watson says CPL will continue to involve legends like Gayle, Russell, Pollard and Bravo in the tournament for a very long time.
“We’ve worked with Chris Gayle as an ambassador. He helped us launch the ‘6ixty’ event in 2022 and helped promote CPL in 2023, and it’s definitely in our plans to [have him involved to] help us in 2024. He’s an absolute global superstar so working with him is really a joy for all parties and really helps us escalate our brand around the world,” said Watson. “In terms of Bravo, Pollard and Russell, they’re really core to the tournament in terms of their contribution and I’m sure they’ll be involved in some capacity for many years, whether that’s continuing as a player, coach or ambassador. They’ve really been important figures for CPL and those franchises they’ve played at so I’m sure they’ll continue to be involved for a long time.”
The four have won multiple titles in the CPL, playing for the likes of the Jamaica Tallawahs, Trinbago Knight Riders, Barbados Tridents and St Kitts and Nevis Patriots.
Watson says they will be honoured for their impact on the league, though he did not confirm a timeline.
“It’s definitely something we’d like to do and something we’ve discussed internally. The way CPL works is, we wait for it to be the right time and we want to do things properly so it’s a bit of a watch-this-space, but it’s definitely something we’d like to do,” he said.
“We’re really fortunate to have had these guys involved since the inception. And these guys are the very greatest white-ball players that have ever played and the fact they’ve been in CPL year in, year out is huge for us. They’ve developed our brand ‘round the world, they’ve built a fanbase here, and they’ve really helped mentor other players and impart their expertise and wisdom, as well as showcasing their talents to the world,” Watson added.