Mirpur: When will Chris Gayle return to his explosive best with a shower of sixes? This is the question on everyone’s mind here after his uncharacteristic knocks against India and Bangladesh in the ongoing ICC World Twenty20.
Gayle was the hero of his country’s World Twenty20 title triumph in Sri Lanka in 2012.
In Bangladesh, so far he’s had two outings. In the first match here against India, he scored 34 runs in 33 balls — with two sixes, and he followed that up with 48 off 48 balls against Bangladesh, adding two more sixes. If anyone else had scored runs at such a pace, it would have been deemed excellent — but not for Gayle, who has a career T20 international strike rate of 136.65.
In the match against Bangladesh, his opening partner Dwayne Smith batted more aggressively. So Smith was asked the reason for Gayle’s ‘slow’ batting. “I am sure that Chris [Gayle] will get the runs at some point in this tournament because he has been batting through the first six to ten overs. I am sure that at some point he is going to get off to a good start, get some good scores,” Smith said.
Since Smith played the quicker knock, he was also asked if he could remember the number of times he had outscored Gayle. “Really and truly, I don’t check for occasions when I have outscored Chris. I just try my best to get West Indies off to good starts and get them into good positions. I am not worried about outscoring Chris, I am just there to get partnerships and get West Indies into good positions.”
The fans though have become accustomed to watching Gayle hit towering sixes at will. He holds the record for the highest number of World Twenty20 sixes, with 47 hits so far. The second highest on the list is Australia’s Shane Watson with a tally of 27.
Gayle’s presence itself is a talking point for every other team. In fact, bowling plans are created around him.
India’s star batsman Suresh Raina said: “West Indies are big hitters and you just need to control your emotions and game plan as to what you are going to do against Gayle or Smith or [Dwayne] Bravo. We have played against them and you just have to go there and give your best.”
West Indies skipper Darren Sammy knows that once Gayle clicks, it usually means victory for his team. “Whenever Gayle plays for West Indies, he is very pumped up to perform,” said Sammy.
Sammy is hoping Gayle will stamp his imprint on the tournament when it matters most. However, until then, fans are going to count the number of balls Gayle plays without scoring a six and must also wait for his 50th maximum in World Twenty20s.
