ECB funding would make England-West Indies women's Test a 'certainty', says Dehring

Cricket West Indies chief executive Chris Dehring says a women's Test against England next year would be a "certainty" if the England and Wales Cricket Board stepped in to help fund the fixture, though the Caribbean board still hopes to cover the costs from its own resources.

"We would welcome any assistance of our much wealthier member boards," Dehring told BBC Sport. "It is very expensive to host cricket in [the] Caribbean."

ECB chair Richard Thompson suggested earlier this week that the board could provide financial assistance to the hosts, who last week revealed significant financial pressures, to keep the red-ball element of the multi-format tour alive. England, in part at least, want the Test to go ahead to aid their preparations for next summer's Ashes, while it would be the first women's Test for West Indies since 2004.

Cricket tours typically involve reciprocal arrangements between boards over costs, with the home board covering the logistical expenses of visitors such as travel and accommodation. In the West Indies, those costs are inflated by the need to fly players and officials between islands, and Cricket West Indies is also hit hard by television production expenses. Last week the board announced a wide range of money-saving measures, including cuts to player contracts.

"We have to fly all of the equipment and crew into any venue to be able to broadcast a match," Dehring explained. "That is a significant figure. Sky doesn't have to fly from London to Manchester for one match."

West Indies, who cancelled a women's Test against Australia earlier this year, are yet to announce a schedule for the England tour, due to be played in April and May next year and featuring three T20s and three one-day internationals in addition to the Test. The process in which islands bid to host the next block of home fixtures began in recent days and should conclude in December, with Dehring confirming there has been interest in hosting the women's matches.

"Once we develop a schedule we will know how much it will cost," he added. "It is far cheaper to host everything in one location but one of the allures of the Caribbean [is] being able to travel to more than one location for matches. We are hoping still we will be able to cover from our own resources but it [the Test] would be a certainty if the ECB were to assist us."

England have played only one Test since losing every game on their Ashes tour of Australia in early 2025 — a defeat by India at Lord's earlier this year — underlining the value of a red-ball fixture ahead of next summer's home Ashes.