Lara calls for agreement between WICB and WIPA

Brian Lara wants to play the tri-nation series in September and is urging the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) and the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to reach an agreement on the tour contracts.

The WICB announced late last Friday that it would issue tour contracts directly to the players for the tournament involving India and Australia, after failing to agree on financial terms with WIPA this week.

"I am going to be playing cricket. Definitely I'm going to be playing cricket," Lara told CMC Sports after being asked whether he was prepared to sign one of the individual contracts. "I want to play cricket, so, as I said, there is some sort of work to be done to finalise things, and I'm sure they are going to get it done as soon as possible.

"Most definitely this has been done before [issuing individual contracts]. As captain of the West Indies, it's a situation where I have to play a very important part. I don't know all the facts, so it's impossible for me to tell you a position, and I'm not someone to take an independent position and I think a rationale must come out of it.

"Hopefully, WIPA, who represents the players, and the West Indies Cricket Board, our father figure, can come together, not just on this issue, but on issues in the future. I think there needs to be more harmony between the two groups."

The WICB said that WIPA's pay demands for the one-day international tournament in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur were 'totally unacceptable' and it could not afford to meet them. The board stated it was offering players an unprecedented 488 % on normal match tour fees, but WIPA was asking for 847 %.

"I think both parties have to come together under one roof. Being a part, we are the players, we are the employees, and the WICB are the employers, and we have to come together and work. And we have to work from the bottom right up to the top, but there must be some harmony between both, some sort of dove-tailing instead of one pulling at the other and always a dispute," said Lara. "For West Indies cricket to move forward, everybody has to be under one roof. Everybody has got to be moving forward in one direction and be happy with each other."

The tournament, an outcome of the co-operation agreement signed between the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the WICB earlier this year, is tentatively scheduled for September 15-29.

Lara, who was captain when West Indies won the Champions Trophy in 2004 in England, saw the tri-nation tournament as a crucial build-up as they prepare for the defence of their Champions Trophy title in October.

"What I like about it is that it will be perfect preparation for the ICC [International Cricket Council] tournament, playing against teams like Australia and India in that tri-nations definitely will get us prepared for defending our trophy that we won a couple of years ago at The Oval. The guys are looking forward to it; and it will be excellent preparation."