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Timeline: Dwayne Bravo's path back into international cricket

Ireland in West Indies 2019-20, Cricket

As Dwayne Bravo returns to West Indies cricket three years after his last international match, here is a recap of everything that transpired since 2014, when he rebelled against the board as captain, was dropped from the ODI squad, and soon phased into a full-time T20 franchise league player

October 7, 2014 - West Indies players mull strike over pay structure, tension with WIPA

Bravo writes "on behalf of the players" that the morale within the team, as they prepare for the first ODI against India in Kochi, is "at an all-time low" following the board's decision to restructure salary, saying the players felt "hoodwinked" by the WIPA.

October 15, 2014 - Bravo-Hinds battle intensifies in email exchange

The growing impasse between West Indies players and the WIPA intensifies as Bravo and Wavell Hinds are engaged in a public battle about Bravo's allegation that Hinds had "hoodwinked" players by signing an MoU, which amounted to taking a massive pay cut

October 17, 2014 - Players pull out of India tour, hold the West Indies board accountable

In a letter to WICB president Dave Cameron, Bravo writes that the players are "disheartened and extremely disappointed" that the board has decided to engage with the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) despite the players' instruction not to do so with regard to discussions on their behalf.

October 17, 2014 - West Indies board says they were left with no option but to pull out

December 2014 - Dropped from ODI squad along with Darren Sammy and Kieron Pollard

January 2015 - Not picked in World Cup squad, Bravo retires from Tests

Having played his last Test in 2010, he decides to quit Test cricket after losing the ODI captaincy to Jason Holder and then being axed from the one-day side for the tour of South Africa and also the World Cup.

June 2015 - 'I knew World Cup axe was coming'

"If we had got selected we actually would have been surprised. We expected it. There was nothing that shocked us," he says on behalf of Pollard who was also not picked for the World Cup.

April 2016 - 'West Indies board the most unprofessional'

Bravo calls the board "most unprofessional" and its president Dave Cameron an "immature", "small-minded", "arrogant" person, who he believes is at "personal war" with his own players. Bravo makes the comments during a Skype interview with CNC3, a television network based out of Trinidad & Tobago.

"Too much times people come down on the players. They questioned our commitment, they questioned whether we were really committed to West Indies cricket or is it just the money. A lot of people don't understand the things we go through as players dealing with our board."

May 2016 - Gayle, Bravo and Sammy question ODI selection

Bravo, Chris Gayle, and Darren Sammy call out West Indies board selection policy after Pollard and Sunil Narine are picked in ODI squad despite not satisfying the criteria of playing in the regional tournament. He tweets: "Joke of the day: WI selectors. One minute Pollard & Narine were not good enough & now are perfect for Tri Nation series? It's like magic! One minute we have to be available for domestic super 50 to be selected and the next minute, it seems we don't. Magic! Get serious people!"

September 2016 - 11 off 9 and 0 for 31 in his last match for West Indies in any format

December 2016 - Major hamstring injury forces him out of BBL and the 2017 edition of the IPL

July 2017 - Cricket West Indies agrees truce

A relaxation on the need to play in regional tournaments to be eligible for West Indies selection is mulled. Bravo still remains unclear about a return after last playing an international match in 2016.

December 2017 'Don't see myself making a comeback'

"I was dropped while I was fit. I don't think now, at 34, it would make any sense coming back. I just need to see what is left for me, for my fans to see Dwayne Bravo playing cricket. That is my priority."

April 2018 - 'Denied opportunity to help West Indies people'

Tensions with the board mean Bravo and a few others are not allowed to represent West Indies in an exhibition match at Lord's to raise funds for those affected by hurricanes Irna and Maria.

"We were denied the opportunity to be a part of something to help Caribbean people in a charity game we wanted to play in and were looking forward to being a part of", Bravo tells ESPNcricinfo. "We weren't contacted or selected, so we just want people to know that we were fully available for the game and are seeking answers behind our non-selection."

July 2018 - Board opens doors for international comeback

Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave opens up a passage for the likes of Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Sunil Narine to make international comebacks by moving the regional 50-over competition to October so as to reduce a clash in fixtures with the various T20 franchise leagues they participate in.

October 2018 - Retires from international cricket

"[...] I must accept that for me to preserve my longevity as a professional cricketer, I must do as others before have done, leave the international arena for the next generation of players," Bravo says in a release.

May 2019 - Named among reserves in West Indies' ODI World Cup squad despite last playing in the format in 2014

November 2019 - Hints at international comeback

December 2019 - Comes out of T20I retirement aged 36

Officially comes out of international retirement, making himself available for selection in the West Indies T20I side in the lead-up to their men's T20 World Cup defence in Australia next year.

January 2020 - Back in West Indies' T20I squad

"Dwayne Bravo was recalled with the specific intention of bolstering our 'death' bowling which was identified as an area that really needs improving," Roger Harper, CWI's lead selector, says.

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