WIPA Advises 22 to Sign

The West Indies Players' Association (WIPA) has advised members of the 22-man squad to accept the WICB's invitations to make themselves available for selection.

In a statement welcoming the recommendations for a truce by Caricom, WIPA said it also expects the WICB to include the seven players with Cable & Wireless contracts.

"WIPA has always insisted that merit and cricketing ability should be the criteria for representing the West Indies and we expect that the West Indies Cricket Board will now include the seven (7) players with Cable and Wireless contracts in the squad selected to prepare for the impending tours."

The association is inviting representatives of the WICB to meet March 14th and 15th to "conclude the negotiations in time for the 2005 Home Series."

"WIPA repeats its assurance that it has always acted and will continue to act in the best interest of its members and West Indies Cricket as a whole and that we will continue with these negotiations in good faith. Accordingly we have advised the original twenty-two (22) players who were invited by the Board to make themselves available for selection to accept the invitation," the statement read.

Meanwhile, the WICB plans to meet over this weekend to discuss the Caricom proposal. "Following the meeting the Board will issue a statement outlining its position," the WICB said.

Digicel and Cable & Wireless have already rejected the main points in the Caricom plan.