West Indies pull out of India tour, BCCI shocked

Dharamsala, Oct 17 (IANS) The West Indies team Friday pulled out of their tour of India reportedly because of an ongoing payment structure dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and West Indies Players' Association (WIPA).

The fourth One-Day International (ODI) here will be their last game of the series, which was scheduled to have a fifth ODI, a Twenty20 international as well as three Tests. 

WICB informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) of the decision Friday and told the Indian board that its players will return home immediately.

The BCCI, in a written statement, expressed shock and disappointment at the decision taken by the WICB and said that its inability to resolve internal issues with its players and allowing the same to affect an ongoing bilateral series did not reflect well on any of the stakeholders involved.

"The withdrawal gives little thought to the future of the game, the players and the long standing relations between the BCCI and the WICB," the BCCI statement added.

"The BCCI wishes to inform all its stakeholders, especially ardent fans of the Indian cricket team, that this is a unilateral decision taken by the WICB and its players in spite of several appeals to the WICB to honour its commitment and complete the series."

The BCCI said that they will pursue all options available to protect its rights, whilst seeking appropriate action from the International Cricket Council (ICC) to ensure that its interests and those of the game at large will not suffer any damage due to such acts of indiscretion.

According to reports, BCCI is mulling legal action against WICB over losses suffered due to the sudden pull out.

To fill-up the vacant cricketing calendar as a result of the pull-out, BCCI, is reportedly contemplating inviting Sri Lanka for a short series though there was no official confirmation of it