potentially the single biggest private sector investment in cricket.

potentially the single greatest private sector investment in cricket since the Kerry Packer revolution 28 years ago.

Like in the Packer era, West Indies cricket at its very best has been undervalued and its players underpaid. Like Packer, Stanford is a visionary putting money where his mouth is.

It's vital that we try to keep cricket going in Zimbabwe, but these are professional sportsmen who have to make a living, I'm personally a bit upset that the ICC has not found the need to become involved by now.

Foreign direct investment is so important to the growth of China's economy that the national government doesn't want to do anything to endanger that.

Zimbabwe Cricket has really had it now. The players relented from a similar position to give ZC a further three weeks until the end of the month to pay the large sums of money owed them. But they are now simply walking away.