West Indies confirm 12 contracts for WT20

The West Indies have moved a step closer to finalising their squad for the World Twenty20 in India next month, with the pay dispute between the players at the West Indies Cricket Board seemingly resolved.

The WICB confirmed that 12 members of the 15-man squad named last month have signed contracts for the tournament.

The remaining three members of the original squad – Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Darren Bravo – have all pulled out for the tournament for reasons unrelated to the pay dispute.

Quick Single: West Indies lose duo for World T20

Narine is currently banned from bowling in international cricket after being called for throwing in November last year, while Pollard hasn't sufficiently recovered from the knee injury that prevented him from playing with the Adelaide Strikers in the KFC Big Bash League this summer.

In a promising sign for the future of West Indies cricket in the Test format, Darren Bravo has instead chosen to focus on playing in the Professional Cricket League, the regional West Indian four-day domestic competition.

"Indeed I'm very grateful and humbled for the opportunity to represent the West Indies Cricket Team at the World Cup," Bravo said in a statement.

"However, I'm of the firm belief that I have a very big part to play in the resurgence of West Indies cricket in the longer formats of the game and I will like the opportunity to play in the PCL because it will put me in good stead and will allow me to achieve those goals that I have aligned myself for the year 2016 and beyond."

While Bravo's replacement has yet to be named, off-spinner Ashley Nurse and allrounder Carlos Brathwaite have been picked in the squad for Narine and Pollard respectively.

Last week, West Indies T20 captain Darren Sammy wrote a letter to WICB chief executive Michael Muirhead in an attempt to resolve the pay dispute between the board and the players.

"As captain of the (Twenty20) team, I wish that we can settle this matter and focus on preparations for the tournament," Sammy wrote.

"I want to state on behalf of the players that we want to play and will represent the West Indies to the best of our abilities."

The dispute appears to have been resolved with the majority of the squad now having signed contracts.

In 2014, a West Indies ODI series against India was abandoned mid-tour following a disagreement between players, the WICB and the West Indies Players' Association, while ongoing issues exist between a number of the West Indies' star players and the WICB, resulting in their continued hiatuses from Test match cricket.

West Indies' World T20 squad (Bravo's replacement to be named): Darren Sammy (c), Sulieman Benn, Jason Holder, Andre Fletcher, Dwayne Bravo, Samuel Badree, Lendl Simmons, Jerome Taylor, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Denesh Ramdin, Chris Gayle, Ashley Nurse, Carlos Brathwaite.