ST. JOHN'S, Antigua: Trinidad and Tobago's star batsman Brian Lara has been left out of the West Indies 14-man squad for the first Test match in the Digicel 2005 Home Series against South Africa schedule for Guyana on March 31. In the absence of Lara, Guyanese batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul will lead the team while wicketkeeper/batsman Courtney Browne was named vice-captain. On Friday the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) invited Lara to make himself available for the first test and he said he would respond within 24 hours. However, Lara's response did not satisfy the WICB. "Brian Lara gave a non-committal response to the West Indies Cricket Board's invitation to make himself available for the match, in which he neither accepted nor rejected the invitation," according to a statement published on the WICB board. "In his response, Lara put a proposition to the Board that could not have been entertained because it would require players to be selected on the team who were ineligible due to the nature of their personal endorsement contracts." "In the circumstances the Board has decided that Lara not be included in the team for the first Test." The 14-man squad will start a training camp in Barbados on March 23 before leaving for Guyana on March 28 for thee first Test. Squad: Shivnarine Chanderpaul (captain), Courtney Browne (vice-captain), Wavell Hinds, Devon Smith, Donavon Pagon, Narsingh Deonarine, Darren Ganga, Ryan Hinds, Corey Collymore, Pedro Collins, Dwight Washington, Darren Powell, Jerome Taylor, Reon King. Reprinted from Caribbean Net News caribbeannetnews.com