England tour to the Caribbean towards the end of 2020 would help significantly: Jason Holder
West Indies skipper Jason Holder is hopeful that England will tour the West Indies towards the end of 2020 in order to help them financially. He also believes it would serve as a token of thanks after the West Indies toured the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The England Cricket Board had estimated losses of up to $481 million if no cricket would have been played in the summer. But West Indies saved the blushes by agreeing to play a three-match Test series which began from July 8 in a bio-secure environment despite the presence of the coronavirus.
Thus Jason Holder is hopeful that England would return the favour by touring the Caribbean by the end of 2020. Jason Holder believes that it would help the West Indies Cricket Board immensely to cut their losses.
"We don't know what's going to happen after this series with the international calendar but if there is an opportunity for England to come over to the Caribbean before the end of the year that would help significantly. It's been a tough last few years for us financially and we've taken a pay cut due to the circumstances. A tour hopefully, if it is possible before the end of 2020, would help keep us afloat," Jason Holder was quoted as saying by Reuters after England won the series 2-1.
We only make money from series against England and India: Jason Holder
Jason Holder also spoke about the financial situation of the West Indies Cricket Board. He revealed that the board only makes profits from the series against England and India, and that was why a tour of England to the Caribbean was so crucial for them.
"We only really make money from England, and I think India. We break even with Pakistan and Australia, and all the rest of the series we play are losses. But in these trying times only England, Australia and India can probably host cricket. Outside of that, the smaller territories are struggling financially to get cricket on," Jason Holder said.
Thus, Jason Holder believes that the bigger cricket boards of countries like India, Australia and England must take inititative in hosting series so that the smaller countries' cricket boards can have less financial problems.