Allen Stanford confirmed last night that his commitment to cricket is under review but hinted that he is more likely to pull out of the domestic game in West Indies than the near-£100 million contract agreed with the ECB in the summer. However, a leading county chairman has called on ECB management to “look at their competence to make decisions” amid speculation that Stanford wants to withdraw less than 12 months into a five-year commitment.

The positive tone of a statement issued by Imran Khan, the communications and media manager for the Stanford 20/20, contrasted with earlier comments from Julie Hodge, Stanford's personal assistant, who said that the Texan banking billionaire was re-evaluating his cricket operation, had been upset at criticism surrounding the $20 million (now about £12.9 million) game last month and is yet to see a return on his heavy financial input.

Stanford has disbanded his “board of legends” made up of former players, including Vivian Richards, who have offered advice during the three years since he began to pump money into cricket in the Caribbean to reinvigorate the national side. His biggest frustration is clearly with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) over contractual problems involving Digicel, its sponsor, in the build-up to the so-called Stanford 20/20 for 20.

Khan said: “Contrary to some recent negative press speculation in relation to Stanford's broader involvement with cricket and specifically the future of the Stanford 20/20 for 20, the Quadrangular Tournament at Lord's and the English Premier League, Sir Allen [has] reaffirmed his desire to continue to work with the England and Wales Cricket Board, and discussions are currently ongoing with the ECB.”

The contract has a get-out clause for both parties in the first year and Hodge said that Stanford has yet to reach any decisions. “We are looking at all our cricket options,” she said. “He has not made any money off cricket and the investment has been huge. There have been a lot of negative responses to his involvement in the sport and at some point you have to evaluate and see what makes sense.”

The ECB has undertaken its own review into events in Antigua during the build-up to the much-hyped game on November 1 that England lost by ten wickets to the Stanford Superstars. Officials were shocked to learn that Stanford's reappraisal was reportedly looking beyond tweaks into the very future of the contests. Even speculation will be seen as embarrassing to Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, who has set so much store by the relationship.

Rod Bransgrove, the Hampshire chairman, said: “Whether Stanford pulls out now or not, he has shown that he can do it whenever he wants. Entrepreneurs change the rules without worrying about contracts. The board has followed a course with him to the exclusion of everything else and really should look at their competence to make decisions for English cricket. I thought they signed a pretty flaky deal with a pretty flaky person.”

South Africa and India rejected Stanford before the ECB agreed a deal for five $20 million matches. Of that, $13 million is shared between the winning side on each occasion, with nothing for the losers. The contract also embraces five quadrangular tournaments worth $9.5 million apiece to pit England against the Stanford Superstars and two other countries. The first event is due to be staged at Lord's before the ICC World Twenty20 next June.

As well as the prize-money - by far the biggest purse in cricket - Stanford reportedly lost another $20 million last month chasing deals largely to try to breach the American market, a holy grail for cricket. The credit crunch is hitting the financial sector hardest and Stanford, with assets valued at about $50 billion, will not welcome a continuing downturn. This may be a tactical game to renegotiate with the ECB.

He made no suggestion of imminent withdrawal when he met David Collier, the ECB chief executive, in London two weeks ago. But a pullout would be another blow to the ECB after Vodafone announced that an annual £4 million deal to sponsor the England team will not be renewed beyond 2010. The board, like the WICB, receives $3.5 million of the $20 million for each showpiece game, with that money split between the counties and grass roots.