Dropped Haynes sues for damages

Cricket

Cricket

Desmond Haynes, the former West Indies opening batsman, is seeking pounds 66,000 in damages after being left out of the home series against Australia earlier this year.

Haynes is suing the President of the West Indies Board of Control and the Barbados Association for loss of earnings after being ruled inelegible for selection. His lawyers have filed an affidavit at the Barbados High Court in Bridgetown, detailing his case.

Haynes is also seeking compensation after his contract with Western Province in South Africa was aborted. He claims he also lost earnings with Middlesex and that his reputation was damaged.

The 39-year-old was not considered to face Australia after he opted to play for Western Province instead of touring India with the West Indies last October and then returned home from South Africa too late to play in all five Red Stripe Cup matches. The WICBC had ruled he should play in those domestic games to be eligible for the Australian series. Haynes returned two days late after asking for "exceptional circumstances" to be taken into account. The WICBC refused his request.

Haynes scored 7,487 runs, including 18 centuries, in 116 Tests between 1978 and 1994. He has also made 8,649 runs and 17 hundreds in one-day internationals.

Richie Richardson, the West Indies captain, and Brian Lara look likely to take part in the Champions' Trophy in Sharjah next month, but the pace bowlers, Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, have still to decide whether to take part.

All four, who played in the drawn series in England, have asked permission to rest instead of taking part in the one-day tournament but Richardson and Lara have said they want to take part if selected.

The West Indies, who won the trophy in 1975 and 1979, are expected to name their 14-man squad at the weekend for an event that is being seen as a build-up to next year's cricket World Cup. It runs from 11-20 October and also involves Sri Lanka and Pakistan, who are involved in a Test series that is not short of controversy.

Salim Malik, the former Pakistan captain, has had his demand that the Pakistan Board consider him for the second Test against Sri Lanka turned down by a court in Islamabad.

Salim was dropped because of charges pending against him by Australia's Tim May and Shane Warne, who allege he offered them bribes to throw a Test in Karachi in November during Australia's tour of Pakistan. The court has fixed another hearing on the case for 28 September and directed the PCB to submit their comments on Salim's petition.

Sri Lanka's leading batsman, Aravinda de Silva, has arrived in Pakistan to strengthen the tourists for the second Test - due to start at Faisalabad on Friday - after cutting short his season with Kent.