Lara
WEST INDIES captain Brian Lara said yesterday he is willing to meet with 'anyone' to help resolve the current crisis in regional cricket.
In a prepared statement Lara said:
"If I can help, I am prepared to speak to anyone, anywhere and at any time, but I suggest with respect, that positive action is needed now. Time is not on our side and hatchets have to be buried with haste if indeed there are hatchets to be buried."
READY TO HELP
Lara who is among seven players the West Indies Cricket Board says will not be considered for the upcoming home series against South Africa and Pakistan, added that he had been approached by several persons asking him to do all he can to resolve the crisis and he stands ready to help in anyway be can.
"If anyone can show me the solution and I felt I could influence a major change, I would respond like a shot," the West Indies captain said.
On Friday night the West Indies Cricket Board president, Teddy Griffith, said seven players - Lara, Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Dwayne Bravo, Fidel Edwards, Dwayne Smith and Ravi Rampaul will not be eligible for selection until the Board is satisfied that individual contracts they have signed with regional communication giants Cable & Wireless contain no provisions which could breach the board's obligation to its major sponsor, Digicel.
Lara said he is worried with the negative cloud that hangs over West Indies cricket at the moment, especially as the South Africans arrive in the Caribbean in three week's time.
In calling for a spirit of compromise Lara said five parties were involved in the current crisis.
"There are five parties directly involved in the overall problem - (1) West Indies Cricket Board (WICB); (2) Digicel; (3) the players themselves including me; (4) Cable & Wireless and (5) West Indies Players Association (WIPA). But this is not simply a regional cricket problem.
"It involves governments, economics and the opinions and judgements of the cricket world at large; to say nothing about shifting much needed energy, attention and focus away from World Cup 2007. The effects are both immediate and far-reaching if we do not find a way to go forward immediately."
Lara added that the solution lay in a 'willingness to give and take."
"The time has long passed where any one party can say, "I am only taking and not giving". We all have to admit that in everyday life, we do and say things that we would do and say differently, if we had another chance.... It is possible that because I am the WI captain; because I was appointed and am employed by WICB; because I am sponsored as a player by Digicel; because I am sponsored as a private individual by C&W; and because I am a member of WIPA that my multi-faceted role may allow me the privilege of opening a door or two, even if slightly. "
