England likely to play Twenty20

Giles Clarke © Getty Images

ECB chairman Giles Clarke has confirmed that the prospect of England taking part in an Allen Stanford-backed Twenty20 in the West Indies is now "very likely".

The ECB met with the Texan at Lord's where they discussed possible joint ventures which could include an offer for an England Twenty20 match in the Caribbean against an All-stars West Indies XI.

"We did see Sir Allen - a date has not be fixed for when anything will be played, or what format it will take this year or going forward into the future," Clarke said.

"I think that match is a very likely to take place. Sir Allen is doing a huge amount for cricket in the West Indies and we are keen to help things develop there.

"Of course we are also keen to give our players the chance to make a significant amount of money and these types of games can be tremendously dramatic.

"We are extremely interested in his ideas but there is a long way to go. We need to confirm a lot of things with our friends in the West Indies.

"There is not a specific date at this moment of time and no specific structure at this time."

Clarke also said that the ECB are still reviewing plans for the future of Twenty20 cricket within the domestic structure, as the Indian Premier League prepars to get under way: "I think what the IPL will achieve is remarkable given the time and speed with which it has been put together.

"We are spending a lot of time looking at creating robust, sustainable and economically viable league that still protects our core revenues of Test cricket."