What’s the story?
West Indian opening batsman Chris Gayle has revealed that there has been significant progress in the negotiations between the West Indies players and the board. Adding to this, both Darren Bravo and Cricket West Indies (CWI) have come to a truce after the left-hander was dropped from the squad for having Twitter altercations with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB, now CWI) president.
“Things are beginning to open up a little more now between the players and the board. It’s looking good, and we’ve to try and build from this to get the best players out on the field. Hopefully, things can get better. Hopefully, I can play a few more games. I definitely want to play the 2019 World Cup,” said Gayle in a promotional event in Bengaluru earlier today.
In case you didn’t know…
There is a long-standing contract dispute between the players and the board which dates back to October 2014 when the West Indian team led by Dwayne Bravo boycotted their tour of India midway and flew back home.
Darren Bravo, on the other hand, was an integral part of the West Indian ODI team before he was sent home from the West Indies squad who were touring Zimbabwe, because of “unacceptable behaviour”.
Details
Earlier, the WICB had made it mandatory for the players to take part in regional List A tournaments to be eligible for selection into the West Indies team, something that the players were reluctant to do.
Now, the board is on the verge of softening its stance after the West Indies Players Association (WIPA)’s new proposal. In all likelihood, Cricket West Indies will abandon its contentious policy regarding player availability for regional cricket.
What’s next?
This means the likes of Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Darren Bravo, Darren Sammy, Lendl Simmons and Gayle himself will be available to play for West Indies in ODIs in the near future. It won’t be a surprise if all these players take part in the ODI series against England starting on September 19.
Author’s take
All the big names playing again for West Indies is welcome news for all the cricket fans as it will make the former World Cup champions a strong force to reckon with.
Windies, who are currently in a race against time to qualify for the 2019Â World Cup, will look up to their star players to earn their team a place in the extravaganza.
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