Windies players hit back with demands

The West Indies players who boycotted the first Test have rejected demands for an apology from the region's board and countered with a list of alleged transgressions by the WICB. The West Indies Players' Association (WIPA), which is negotiating on the players' behalf, released a statement dripping with sarcasm and highlighting what it said were the board's slip-ups over the past year that have lost them millions of dollars.

Many top West Indies players, including captain Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan, withdrew from the first Test against Bangladesh last week, forcing the board to select a second-string side, which crashed to a 95-run defeat.

With the dispute continuing to rumble on, the selectors have been made to pick another weakened side for the second Test starting Friday.

Among the players demands are that they be provided with a contract "clearly outlining the terms and conditions prior to a series or series of matches", and that the board not sell "players' intellectual property and image rights without permission".

The WIPA statement claimed the WICB has "lost almost US $10 million dollars in almost one year for breach of agreements with third parties".