Haynes leaving the Test arena

Cricket

Desmond Haynes, the veteran West Indies opening batsmanopener who has been in dispute with his country's authorities, has retired from the international game.

Haynes, 40, faxed his retirement letter to the West Indies Board of Control from England where he is starting a three-year coaching job with the Sussex county team.

"In making this decision, I have taken a number of factors into consideration, not least of which is the need to move on to a new phase in my life while seeking to provide for the future well-being of my family," Haynes said

Haynes played 116 Tests and 239 one-day internationals but his Test career ended when he was left out of the home series against Australia in 1995.

He had failed to meet a stipulation which required all players, except those on Test duty, to play in all five matches in the domestic Red Stripe competition barring injury or "exceptional circumstances''. But Haynes sued for loss of earnings and is still locked in a legal battle.

In his Test career, he scored 7,487 runs, including 18 centuries, at an average of 42.30. He holds the record for the most runs (8,649) and highest number of centuries (17) in one-day internationals.

Apart from coaching Sussex, Haynes has signed a new one-year contract with Western Province in South Africa as a player for the 1996-97 season.

Sussex have gone nine years without winning a trophy but Haynes plans to create a happy atmosphere in the camp as the first step to success on the south coast.