Pay dispute: Tony Cozier claims West Indies’ World Cup in doubt

The commentator feels both the players and the board are to blame


Afp/news Desk October 18, 2014

KARACHI: Commentator Tony Cozier has said the differences between the West Indian board and its players, which ultimately led to the cancellation of West Indies’ tour of India, have thrown the Calypso’s participation in the 2015 World Cup into jeopardy, according to ESPNCricinfo.

The series — scheduled to include five ODIs, three Tests and a T20 — came to a grinding halt after the fourth ODI as the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) confirmed that the players will be returning back home due to a pay disagreement.

“They [West Indies] have got three Test matches in December [against South Africa], five ODIs in January and a T20, and then they are scheduled to go straight from South Africa to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand,” said Cozier in a telephone interview. “I can't see that happening if the standoff continues."

Cozier felt the abandonment of the tour is a ‘lose-lose situation’ and stated that both the players and the board are to blame for letting the dispute get out of hand. He believes the players should have made their stand prior to leaving for the tour rather than doing so in India, and that the WICB should have handled the situation better when it escalated there.

BCCI may take ‘serious action’ against WICB

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) may consider cancelling India’s 2016 tour of the West Indies, which is scheduled to include five ODIs, three Tests and a T20, with BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel claiming that ‘serious action’ is required.

However, the West Indian players will still be allowed to take part in the Indian Premier League, confirmed Patel. "Our problem is with the WICB, not their players," said Patel.

However, a WICB statement claimed that it was the players' decision to withdraw their services for the remainder of the tour rather than the board’s.

"The WICB clarifies that the players in the West Indies Squad currently in India represented by Dwayne Bravo indicated to the WICB through the West Indies Team Management that they have taken the decision to withdraw their services for the remainder of the tour of India," said the statement.

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