(Jamaica Gleaner) Out of favour West Indies batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan and attorney Dave Kissoon have resigned from the board of the West Indies Players Association (WIPA).
In a tersely worded statement from WIPA’s chief executive officer Michael Hall, he thanked both men for the time served on the WIPA executive.
“Both Ramnaresh and Dave have in their own ways contributed to WIPA’s progress. We certainly wish Ramnaresh all the very best in his future cricket career as we are certain that he still has a great deal to contribute to West Indies cricket,” Hall said.
“We are also grateful for Dave’s service to WIPA in his two years as a director, and hope that his future career is also highly successful.”
The statement said the positions made vacant by both men will be filled at the next annual general meeting in January 2013.
Sarwan, whose resignation took effect on October 23, last represented the West Indies in Test cricket in the summer of 2011 against India. Since then, he represented Leicestershire in English County Cricket and had declared that he would never represent the West Indies again.
In September, he won damages against the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) over comments that were made about his fitness. A judge awarded the 32-year-old right hander US$161,000 in damages.
How-ever, he recently softened his stance and contacted WICB president Julian Hunte about the possibility of once again representing the West Indies. He has since also reportedly had conversations with chairman of selectors, Clyde Butts.
Gleaner sources suggest that Sarwan’s resignation from the WIPA executive may be his way of demonstrating to the board that he is once again ready to don the maroon and gold of the West Indies cricket team.
Kissoon was the lead attorney in the recent court matter concerning player contracts and a disputed memorandum of understanding involving WIPA and the WICB. In addition to his resignation, he has also withdrawn his services from the players’ association. He became a director of WIPA in 2010.
Disagreement
Sources close to the situation suggest that Kissoon’s resignation resulted from a disagreement over attorney’s fees. However, when contacted, Hall declined to comment beyond confirming that the attorney had indeed resigned from the WIPA board.
As a member of WIPA’s executive team, Kissoon’s responsibilities included the development and implementation of policy concerning the welfare of West Indian cricketers and ensuring the shared governance of cricket.
His other responsibilities included leading ongoing negotiations between WIPA and the WICB concerning the collective bargaining rights of cricketers, acting as lead attorney and advocate for WIPA in various complex litigations in Guyana, Trinidad and throughout the Caribbean concerning players’ rights.
