The West Indies Cricket Board( WICB ) is scrambling to get a team together for the first Test against Bangladesh starting on Thursday after the selected players decided to boycott the match due to contract disputes.
The West Indies Players Association( WIPA ) announced on Tuesday that the squad, captained by Chris Gayle, had withdrawn from the series with immediate effect. The WICB has said the match would go ahead but has not stated whether it is recruiting an alternative team after Tuesday’s boycott announcement. However, Jamaican fast bowler Daren Powell, not included in the selected 13 for the game in St.Vincent, told Reuters on Wednesday that he had been approached by the board to play. Powell, dropped for May’s tour of England but a regular over recent years with 37 Test appearances to his name, said he had turned down the chance to play.
“I was contacted by the West Indies Board but i told them i was not available this time,” Powell said.
The WICB faces a huge challenge in finding a team and making arrangements to get them to St.Vincent in time for the game. The Barbados Nation newspaper reported on Wednesdfay that 16-year old Barbadian opening batsman Kraigg Brathwaite is among those who have been approached to play in the first test. Braithwaite is in Jamaica for the regional Under-19 tournament and the Nation that several other Barbadians were being considered including Former Test player Tino Best.