blessing of the island's top players.

With the ICC looming and because of the tight domestic schedule which sees three incoming tours, BCBC officials have decided to do away with open league cricket for the 1993 season.

Clarence Tucker, vice president of the BCBC, said: "We looked at the international programme ahead of us felt that it would be beneficial to play this way since both the ICC Trophy and International Youth Tournament calls for limited overs and the circle restrictions.

"In order to prepare the players for these competitions properly we need to use the international format as close as we can. But it likely that we can return to open cricket the season after the international commitments,'' he explained.

Results are certain in every match with teams now not able to bat long hours and play for draws which was the main criticism of last season's competition.

Injured Bermuda captain Wendell Smith, one of the more adventurous captains locally, was guilty of negative cricket himself last year in the open league.

In one match, against Western Stars, he batted for more than five hours in a tame draw and he sees the change as positive for local cricket.

He said: "I see it as a positive step on the Board's part to assure that we're given as much opportunity as possible to prepare properly for ICC. From a spectators' point of view it's a wonderful change because you'll always get results.'' The limited overs version calls for captains to be more shrewd and tactical as they manipulate their fielders and bowlers against the fielding restrictions for the first 15 overs which allows just two fielders outside of the circle.

In the later stages six fielders, including the wicket-keeper, must be in the circle.

In open cricket there aren't such restrictions, particularly on the bowlers.

"One game I bowled David Adams and Eugene Foggo for 48 overs,'' Smith remembers.

"There are a lot of clever things that go on. Obviously for teams deep in bowling like Western Stars it will be to their benefit.'' Charlie Marshall, who will replace Smith as captain for the Barbados tour next month because of Smith's knee injury, is also in favour of the change.

"I'm for it because for the next two years we're going to be playing a lot of limited overs games so the change to limited overs is beneficial in terms of preparation for the ICC,'' said Marshall, whose team, Bailey's Bay, won the limited over league last season.

"The reason why we had so many draws in open cricket was because teams would bat all day which was not good for our cricket. When foreign teams come here we struggle because mentally we're not prepared for limited overs.'' Former Western Stars and Bermuda captain, Arnold Manders, is another in favour of scrapping open cricket for the new season. Like the other two, Manders is part of Bermuda's plans for next year's ICC Trophy.

"I think going back to limited overs will be a good idea,'' the Western Stars all-rounder admitted. "It will mean more exciting cricket all around and local cricket needs a boost these days.

"What international cricket we play in all have limited overs, so we need to play that way to improve. Maybe it's a year too late, we should have had it last year. Maybe the Board was looking towards ICC play and they probably want the players to get in as many overs games as possible.'' Added Manders: "It will mean an adjustment for both bowlers, batsmen and fielders in a way. The batsmen will have to pace themselves, score as many runs as possible and try to bat the entire 50 overs.

"The bowlers will have to maintain line and length in order to contain the batsmen and the fielders have to concentrate on keeping it tight as well.''