Windies board releases five players for early CPL matches

The players were previously retained on a "free" by their respective franchises at the CPL draft in Barbados in February and will be available as their sides aim to make their mark in the early exchanges of the CPL.

St. Lucia Zouks has announced that the injured Fidel Edwards (in pic) will be replaced by experienced wicket-keeper batsman Denesh Ramdin until July 11.

The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has agreed to release its star players namely, leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo, all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite, batsman Darren Bravo and skipper Jason Holder for the opening weeks of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), which starts from June 29.

The players were previously retained on a "free" by their respective franchises at the CPL draft in Barbados in February and will be available as their sides aim to make their mark in the early exchanges of the CPL.

Carlos Brathwaite, whose match-winning heroics guided the West Indies to its second World T20 title in India, will join St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots for its opening home match against Guyana Amazon Warriors on June 30.

It will be the 27-year-old's second year with the Patriots, having previously featured for Antigua Hawksbills and Barbados Tridents.

Holder will link up with his home team Barbados Tridents, while Darren Bravo returns to Trinbago Knight Riders where the 27-year-old batsman will link up once agin with Dwayne Bravo. Leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo will once again feature for the Guyana Amazon Warriors.

The players are currently in the Caribbean ODI team for the tri-series involving Australia and South Africa, and they will link up with their franchises until 11 July, upon resumption of their international Test commitments with the West Indies for the series against India.

Meanwhile, St. Lucia Zouks has announced that experienced wicket-keeper batsman Denesh Ramdin will replace the injured Fidel Edwards until July 11. Ramdin, who has played 58 T20 internationals till date, will then be replaced by left-arm spinner Kristopher Ramsaran for the remainder of the tournament.

Commenting on the same, CPL CEO Damien O'Donohoe said, "On behalf of the CPL and our thousands of supporters across the Caribbean and beyond, I would like to extend a warm welcome to these five West Indies and global superstars for the fourth installment of CPL.

"Our thanks to the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), Coach and Chairman of Selection Committee for facilitating the release of the players for the opening weeks of the CPL. It's a tremendous boost for the competition and I have no doubt that each of the players will be motivated to add great value to their squads.

"All five players know what the passion and the excitement of CPL is all about and are box-office draws across each of the five teams. I know their fans will welcome the players with open arms once more. In welcoming Denesh to the Zouks, we would all like to wish Fidel a speedy recovery and we hope to see him back in action in the near future.