WICB Four-Day Tournament starts January 8

The West Indies Cricket Board’s (WICB) Four-Day Tournament for 2010 will bowl off on January 8, the Board announced on Tuesday. The upcoming season will feature seven teams, with 21 matches being played over a two-month period and will have several new initiatives aimed at bringing spectators back to the game.

The other initiative is the hosting of an entire round in one territory and the creation of a cricket festival atmosphere to offer more scope for sponsorship and event promotion. In addition, this format will pose less logistical and physical challenges with travel and hotel arrangements.

The first round bowls off on January 8-11 in Jamaica and from there the tournament moves to the Leeward Islands (January 15-18), to Barbados for two rounds (January 22-25 and January 25 to February 1). There will be a break from February 2 to 11, before play resumes in Guyana for the fifth round (January 12-15). The penultimate round will be in Trinidad (February 19-22) before the final round in the Windwards on January 26 to March 1.

Fixtures in the West Indies Cricket Board’s Four-Day Tournament 2010 (venues to be determined)

Round 1: January 8-11 in Jamaica

Jamaica vs Windward Islands

Trinidad and Tobago vs Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC)

Barbados vs Leeward Islands

bye: Guyana

Round 2: January 15-18 in Leeward Islands

Jamaica vs Leeward Islands – St Kitts or Antigua

Barbados vs CCC – St Kitts

Guyana vs Trinidad and Tobago – Antigua (day/night)

bye: Windward Islands

Round 3: January 22-25 in Barbados

Barbados vs Trinidad and Tobago

Windward Islands vs CCC

Jamaica vs Guyana

bye: Leeward Islands

Round 4: January 29-February 1 in Barbados (hosted by CCC)

CCC vs Guyana

Trinidad and Tobago vs Leeward Islands

Windward Islands vs Barbados (day/night)

bye: Jamaica

Round 5: February 12-15 in Guyana

Guyana vs Barbados

CCC vs Jamaica (day/night)

Leeward Islands vs Windward Islands

bye: Trinidad and Tobago

Round 6: February 19-22 in Trinidad

Trinidad and Tobago vs Windward Islands

Barbados vs Jamaica

Guyana vs Leeward Islands

bye: CCC

Round 7: February 26-March 1 in Windward Islands

Guyana vs Windward Islands in Grenada

Trinidad and Tobago vs Jamaica in Grenada

CCC vs Leeward Islands in St Lucia (day/night)

bye: Barbados