The Gayle-WICB saga
A timeline of the dispute between Chris Gayle and the West Indies Cricket Board
ESPNcricinfo staff
05-Jun-2012
A timeline of the dispute between Chris Gayle and the West Indies Cricket Board.
- April 20, 2011 - Gayle signs with Royal Challengers Bangalore for IPL 2011, meaning he is unavailable for the home series v Pakistan; WICB says it granted Gayle a no-objection certificate only after he had made himself unavailable for national selection.
- April 21, 2011 - In an interview with a Jamaican radio station, Gayle says the way he had been treated by WICB had left him with little choice but to join RCB, and criticises West Indies coach Ottis Gibson.
- June 15, 2011 - A meeting between WICB and West Indies Players' Association representatives, called to resolve the dispute, ends heatedly, casting further doubt on Gayle's future.
- July 1, 2011 - Gayle releases a statement, tracing the dispute back to 2009, when now WICB chief Ernest Hilaire had voiced doubts on his ability to captain West Indies.
- July 5, 2011 - The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) heads of government decide to intervene in the dispute.
- August 25, 2011 - Gayle has a one-on-one meeting with Hilaire; no major breakthrough.
- October 20, 2011 - Gayle will be considered for selection if he retracts his statements about WICB and its officers, the board says in a statement.
- October 27, 2011 - Gayle asks WICB to "state clearly" what it wants him to apologise for.
- February 21, 2012 - WICB asks Gayle to make up his mind about his future with West Indies; Hilaire says Gayle can't ask for unconditional no-objection certificates for domestic Twenty20 tournaments around the world and simultaneously play for West Indies.
- March 26, 2012 - Gayle signs a CARICOM-brokered agreement with WICB.
- April 6, 2012 - Gayle and WICB reach an understanding that paves the way for his West Indies return. However, the deal's success is expected to be tested by an ongoing lawsuit between the board and WIPA, to which Gayle is a party.
- May 3, 2012 - Gayle pulls out of deal with English county Somerset, declaring himself committed to playing for West Indies in all forms of the game.
- May 11, 2012 - WICB ask Gayle to meet to mop up 'residual matters', including, it is believed, the ongoing WIPA lawsuit.
- June 5, 2012 - Gayle's 15-month international exile ends, as he is picked in West Indies' squad for the ODIs in England. He had last represented his region at the 2011 World Cup.