FILE
Ramnarine labelled WICB 'despotic' and tyrannical.
GEORGETOWN (Reuters):
WEST INDIES skipper Brian Lara's chances of playing in the second Test against South Africa have increased after a breakthrough in the dispute over
individual endorsements.
Cable & Wireless (C&W), who sponsor Lara and the six other players who were omitted from the first test which started
on Thursday, has agreed to
conditionally release them from their contracts.
Lara, together with Ramna-resh Sarwan, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Smith, Dwayne Bravo, Ravi Rampaul and Fidel Edwards, were all left out because their endorsements conflicted with the West Indies Cricket Board's (WICB) main sponsor, Digicel.
However, despite optimism that C&W's offer could speed the return of the seven players to the team, the dispute has created intense ill feeling between the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) and the WICB.
In a statement from WIPA, president Dinanath Ramnarine labelled the WICB "despotic and tyrannical" and said that players had been put under enormous pressure, including receiving death threats.
"The players have taken the struggle as far as they can but now face overwhelming pressure including death threats, and threats from the WICB never to play again, threats and intimidation from sponsors and pressure from highest political levels within the length and breadth of the Caribbean community," he said.
WICB CONCERNED
The WICB called Ramnarine's accusations irresponsible, with corporate communications
manager Leonard Robertson
saying: "The WICB is concerned about the tone and content of this highly emotional and totally inaccurate statement, which is most unbecoming and unworthy of
an organisation representing
professional sportsmen."
C&W announced on Thursday that it fully supported a WICB proposal for a further review
of its personal endorsement
contracts by adjudicator Justice Adrian Saunders.
"Cable & Wireless has taken the decision to release the players from their obligations to the
company so as to remove every obstacle to their immediate
eligibility for selection to the West Indies team," the company said in a statement.
"In order to help relieve the time pressure for this review imposed by the start of the second Test with South Africa, said it will release its contracted players from their obligations to the company until such a time as Justice Saunders completes his adjudication and delivers his rulings," the statement added.
It also said it was willing to adjust terms of the contracts if they are found to be problematic.
"Moreover, if the adjudicator finds that the contracts are not in the nature of individual endorsements, C&W will unconditionally release the players, if they so desire," the statement added.
The second Test will be played in Trinidad, Lara's home country, from April 8.
