Saturday 18 October 2014 20:52, UK
West Indies Cricket Board member Clive Lloyd hopes the recent actions of his national team will not render cricketing ties with India "irreparable".
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is understood to be considering its response following the West Indies' withdrawal from the tour of India, with a one-day international, a Twenty20 international and three Tests remaining.
The West Indies players have been locked in a pay dispute, which had threatened the series from the start, and the rest of the tour has now been cancelled.
India won the fourth ODI on Friday - effectively winning the five-match series 2-1 - and confirmation of the West Indies' withdrawal arrived after the game following a day of mixed messages from the respective boards.
Former West Indies captain Lloyd has now been quoted by the Times of India as saying: "I apologise on behalf of West Indies cricket.
"We have great affinity towards India and their players. Some of the guys decided to stop the tour and I think it is a mistake.
"We should not have allowed few players to do that. You (India) have treated us royally and I have felt it. It is unfortunate that we left and I hope the damage is not irreparable."
Following a board meeting on Friday evening, the WICB confirmed the tour was over and in a statement released on the organisation's website, apologised "unreservedly" for the early end to the contest.
The WICB said it had offered to field a replacement team for the final five matches of the tour but that "was not considered acceptable" by the BCCI.
The West Indies team have been in dispute with the West Indies Players
Association (WIPA) over the signing of a new collective bargaining agreement and memorandum of understanding, which would see sponsorship payments reallocated to fund the wider professional game in the islands.
