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Touchline • Issue 18 • 5
New South Wales-based businessman Shaun
Martyn has revealed plans to stage a franchise-
based women’s Twenty20 cricket competition in
Singapore within the next nine months.
The proposed Women’s International Cricket
League would bring together the world’s best
female players in six company-owned teams,
over a 12-day event to be held in the Southeast
Asian country. Martyn, who is working with
former Australia World Cup winner Lisa
Sthalekar to gather support for the proposed
tournament, said they have already found
businesses willing to back the venture.
“We’re in final negotiations with three
companies and we’ve been approached in
the last week by one cricket association to
purchase a franchise,” Martyn said. “It’s really
about finding appropriate dates. At this stage,
we expect our top-tier players will earn in the
vicinity of $40,000 (€29,200) for the 12 days.”
Martyn claims women’s World Twenty20
champions Australia have already given their
backing to the project, adding that former
Australia fast bowler Geoff Lawson and former
West Indies captainClive Lloyd,who is also an ICC
match referee, have signed up as ambassadors
of the new tournament. Martyn added that
some of the profits from the tournament will
be directed towards development projects in
ICC member countries.
PLAN EMERGES FOR
WOMEN’S TWENTY20
LEAGUE
HAWK-EYE IN TALKS OVER RUGBY
UNION ROLE
British sports tracking technology company Hawk-Eye has said it is
in talks with the International Rugby Board (IRB) about providing
a replacement to the controversial television match official (TMO)
system ahead of the 2015 World Cup.
Hawk-Eye already operates goal-line systems in football and video
technology in Australian rules football league (AFL). It believes it
can improve the speed of decision-making after the TMO system
caused controversy during the finale to the English domestic rugby
season.
Saracens chief executive Edward Griffiths labelled TMO “a
shambles” following the club’s 24-20 Premiership final defeat to
Northampton Saints – a game in which it took four minutes to
award Northampton’s winning try and was also marked by two
disallowed tries. Hawk-Eye founder Paul Hawkins told the Press
Association Sport news agency, “Our system is a much cleverer
way of looking at incidents. In Aussie rules, we have halved the
average time for decisions to be made. We are in conversation with
Premiership Rugby and the IRB and they are aware of our products.
We hope of course they will be there for next season and it would
be great if we were there for the World Cup.”
NHL PLANS TO RETURN TOWORLD
CUP OF HOCKEY
National Hockey League (NHL) commissioner Gary Bettman has said
the league and its Players’ Association (NHLPA) are closing in on a
deal to resurrect the World Cup of Hockey competition, with Toronto
reportedly set to stage its return in 2016.
The last edition of the World Cup of Hockey was held in 2004 and
staged in seven cities in North America and Europe, with the final in
Toronto.
A World Cup would prove lucrative for the NHL and the players’ union,
and crucially wouldn’t require a three-week league shutdown in the
middle of a season, as the Olympic Games do.
The NHL is currently experiencing major growth and following on from
the troubles that led to a fourth work stoppage in 20 years last season
it is able to reflect on a campaign capped by a Stanley Cup series
featuring North America’s two biggest markets. “By almost any measure
this may have been the most successful season, on and off the ice, in
league history,” Bettman added.
Sarah Taylor, T20I Women’s Cricketer of the Year 2013
© paddynapper