All of Us Could Have Been Banned for Life, Dwayne Bravo Opens up on 2014 India Tour

Former Windies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo opened up on the 2014 India tour debacle in an exclusive interview to i955fm. Meanwhile, Bravo had announced his retirement from all formats of international cricket in October.

However, on October 17, 2014, in the middle of the fourth ODI between India and the Windies in Dharamsala, the Windies Cricket Board decided to call off the remainder of the tour. The cricketing board informed the BCCI they were left with no choice after a contracts fallout with the players.

Windies beat India in the first ODI and lost the next game in Delhi.

Moreover, the third match was abandoned due to a storm before the Windies travelled to the quaint hill of Dharamsala. Dwayne Bravo also added he and his team were not in favour of pulling out. However, it would reflect poorly on the country and its cricket. In spite of everything, Bravo continued to appeal which eventually left them with no choice but to abandon the tour.

“Collectively as a team, we decided what to do. I listened to every single player. Apart from one player, everyone signed on a piece of paper, that they were all in support of leaving the tour. But we did not just decide to walk away from the tour. There were different times when we tried to reach out to both our WIPA president [Wavell Hinds] and the cricket president [Dave Cameron, Cricket West Indies president]. So we threatened [to pull out] from the first game, but we played. We threatened for the second game, but we played. The [fourth] game we went out (the whole team accompanied Bravo to the toss), so it was just a message and a signal, trying to let them know that we are not happy with whatever is going on,” Dwayne Bravo said.

Mr Srinivasan requested us to stay – Bravo

Meanwhile, the Carribean star, Dwayne Bravo also revealed the Windies were due to fly out before the first ODI. Meanwhile, a text message came from N. Srinivasan, the-then president of BCCI, requesting them to go ahead with the game which changed the mind of Bravo and his company.

“I remember fully well before we said we weren’t going to play the first game, 3 am in the morning, I get a message from the BCCI boss, the old one, Mr [N] Srinivasan, that “please take the field.” I listened to him – and woke up at 6 am to tell the team that we have to play. And everyone was against playing. Everyone thought that I panicked and chickened out and all these things,” he added.

Furthermore, the 35-year-old also said the relationship between Cricket West Windies and the players began turning bitter in January. Meanwhile, the fourth ODI against India was the last time he had played an ODI.