W.I. itinerary

Press, 15 November 1984, Page 35

W.I. itinerary

PA Wellington The New . Zealand cricket team will play the powerful West Indies at least nine times on next year’s tour of the Caribbean, according to the planned tour itinerary. The itinerary proposed by the West Indies Cricket Board of Control includes five oneday internationals and four tests in eight weeks between March 15 and May 9. The secretary of the New Zealand Cricket Council, Mr Graham Dowling, said this week that the itinerary would go to the council’s board of control for confirmation at its meeting on December 1 and 2.

“Our executive received it at its meeting recently and the general view was that the

itinerary looked quite acceptable and would go to the boardon that basis,” Mr Dowling said.

There are 12 matches lined up, with New Zealand’s opponents for three three-day matches — in Jamaica, Antigua and St Lucia — still to be advised by the West Indies board.

It will be only the second time New Zealand has toured the Caribbean. The last time was in 1972 when Mr Dowling was captain until injured. "The way the West Indies are continuing to play, it is going to be a tough assignment for our team,” he said. The tour programme was designed not to be too congested, he said, but the New Zealand team may have a hurried departure after returning from the one-day world series in Australia, which finishes with a March 10 final. “If New Zealand succeed in getting through to even the

semi-finals, let alone the final, it is going to be a fairly rushed exercise to get back to New Zealand and then be re-outfit-ted and repacked,” Mr Dowling said. ' However, the team would have to return here briefly, rather than fly to the Caribbean from Australia. The planned itinerary is: March 15, 16, 17, match in Jamaica; March 20, one-day international, Antigua; March 22, 23, 24, match in Antigua; March 27, one-day international, Trinidad; March 29, 30, 31, April 2,3, first test, Port of Spain, Trinidad; April 6,7, 8, 10, 11, second test, Georgetown, Guyana; April 14, one-day international, Georgetown; April 17, one-day international, Trinidad; April 19, 20, 21, match at St Lucia; April 23, one-day international, Barbados; April 26, 27, 28, 30, May 1, third test, Bridgetown, Barbados; May 4,5, 6,8, 9, fourth test, Kingston, Jamaica.