Digicel welcomes ICC mediation

Digicel, the current sponsors of the West Indies cricket team, and one of the parties embroiled in the recent Caribbean contract dispute has said it would welcome and support any offer from the ICC and the Federation of International Cricketer's Associations (FICA) to resolve the present stalemate.

The ICC has made it clear that it will not involve itself in the dispute, unless explicitly asked to do so. The West Indies Cricket Board has made this position clear to Digicel, although Roger Braithwaite, the WICB chief executive, has been actively involved in talks with Malcolm Speed, his opposite number at the ICC.

Last week, a Digicel spokesman, in an exclusive interview to Cricinfo, talked about the company's growing "disappointment" at the WICB's seeming unwillingness to resolve the dispute. "The whole process has been frustrating as our whole investment is about having the best West Indies cricket team," said the spokesman. "We are not an administrator and all we have ever wanted is the best for West Indies cricket."

The contract row has now clearly hit rock bottom, with a second-string West Indies team playing Test matches in Sri Lanka. Stars like Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Brian Lara, who have personal endorsements with Digicel's rival mobile communications company Cable and Wireless, are absent, thus robbing the series of its sheen.

The latest statement from Digicel reveals more than a tinge of desperation on the company's part, as it struggles to find a way out of the dispute. "Digicel continues to remain hopeful that a solution can be created between the WICB and WIPA that provides value to the players, fans and organisations that are supporting West Indies Cricket," said Ben Atherton, Digicel Group marketing director in a press release. "We believe that the current situation could benefit positively from the international expertise and best practices garnered by the world's governing body and player's association in the interests of all parties involved".