India-West Indies T20s at Florida “98% on”, says reports

According to an ESPNcricinfo report, the BCCI general manager MV Shridar met the WICB commercial manager Nelecia Yeates at the Central Broward Regional Park (CBRP) on Thursday to discuss aboutthe proposed T20 series. A source close to the negotiations confirmed that the series is “98% on” with the only hold up being the visa status of players.

The BCCI has reportedly submitted the names, photographs, and other necessary documents for the planned T20 squad to the US Embassy in Jamaica. Apart from the visas, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) also needs to get approval from the ICC to host matches in the United States of America. However, that is expected to be just a formality with the ICC keen on conducting more matches in the USA. According to ESPNcricinfo, the application for the proposed T20 series will be approved once it is submitted to ICC chief operating officer Iain Higgins, who is currently in Florida for the Caribbean Premier League matches.

The matches are likely to be played on August 27 (Saturday) and 28 (Sunday) in a bid to capitalise on the weekend holidays. The Board is also keen to start the matches at 7.30pm Indian time to cash in on the prime-time audience in India. With the broadcast rights and ticket-pricing policy yet to be finalised, the confirmation of the series is only expected to come sometime next week.