Cricket West Indies will partner with the government of Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean Premier League to host two women's T10 matches ahead of the second men's semi-final and final.

The two matches – NLCB Challenge on Thursday, 10 October and Courts Invitational on Saturday, 12 October – will feature the best women cricketers from across the Caribbean. The games will take place at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad and Tobago.

Pete Russell, the CPL COO, wants more opportunities for women cricketers in the region and is happy to take the first step. "CPL is always looking for ways to innovate and give more chances for fans to enjoy world-class cricket.

The Women join the #BiggestPartyInSport ! 💃🏏

HERO CPL WILL HOST WOMEN’S T10 MATCHES IN TRINIDAD AHEAD OF MEN'S SEMIS & FINALS

Read more: https://t.co/TcJbFq1a8p pic.twitter.com/uWAJsRVnKA — Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) September 30, 2019

"These T10 matches with the best women’s cricketers from across the Caribbean are just the latest example of our tournament pushing to be more inclusive and forward thinking. We are delighted to be providing the chance for these players to be part of our event."

The Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave agreed with Russell and expressed hope that the initiative will inspire young women to take up the sport. "Improving the opportunities for women and girls to get involved in cricket is one of our top strategic priorities and we are delighted that the CPL and Government of Trinidad and Tobago have come together with us to ensure that women’s cricket gets chance to be involved in the Hero CPL for the first time.

"These two exhibition games will be highly competitive and will hopefully inspire more young girls in the Caribbean to get involved in our sport."

The games could pave the way for a full-fledged women's T20 league in the future, which the CPL management has even previously expressed interest in establishing.

Improving the opportunities for women and girls to get involved in cricket is one of our top strategic priorities. CWI CEO Johnny Grave

"These matches represent a brilliant opportunity for the region’s top women cricketers to showcase their talents in the shorter format of the game and we hope the NLCB Challenge and the Courts invitational are forerunners to a sustainable women’s league in the future. We are delighted that CNC3 will show the games live in the Caribbean with Sportsmax broadcasting live to the rest of the Caribbean. YouTube will carry the games live to the rest of the world," added the Sports and Youth affairs minister Shamfa Cudjoe.

The first game will begin at 3:00 PM and the second at 12:30 PM. The second semi-final is expected to start at 7 PM on the 10th and the final will take place at 5 PM on the 12th.