Gayle Still Wants To Lead The West Indies
After their embarrassing loss of a 2-0 Test series on home ground to South Africa, Chris Gayle’s position as captain of the West Indies has been questioned. Gayle was first reported to say that he would consider his future as captain of the West Indies, but has now stated that he would very much like to continue leading his country.
Commenting on the poor batting display against South Africa, Gayle admitted that conditions for batting were perfect, but he said "I thought we batted poorly in the first innings and that put us on the back foot." This defeat comes after a string of defeats, but despite this Gayle was confident he could improve and do a better job in the future. The other contenders for captaincy are, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo, all of whom have previously led their country at one point or the other.
Gayle started his career by playing at youth international level for West Indies and finally making his debut for the first class team when he was 19 years old. He played his first Test and One Day International match a few months after that. He’s a left-handed explosive batsman, who is known for his wide-range of shots. He is one of the most successful One Day International players, with 19 centuries and over 200 appearances. He currently holds the record for the highest innings score in the Twenty20 International, scoring 117 against the South Africans. He also performs equally well in Test matches and plays in the Indian Premier League for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Under the leadership of Gayle, the West Indies have lost a staggering nine times, while only winning three of the twenty Test matches. The shorter formats do not boast a better result either, having lost 30 in 53 ODI’s and 10 in 17 Twenty20’s. Gayle’s personal achievements against South Africa have not been too impressive either; he managed only 159 runs in five innings at an average of 31. But stats show that since becoming captain, Gayle’s performance has improved his average in Test cricket which has been over 50, 1528 runs at 47.75, which is an impressive accomplishment. He claims to have matured and is willing to work hard to get better results for West Indies cricket in the future.
Gayle’s attitude has also come under debate, he was reported to have remarked, "I wouldn't be so sad if Test cricket died out,” This comment angered the fans as well as the selectors. And the fact that last year, he turned up to a Test match barely 48 hours before the start of the match in England, didn’t help things. His attitude forced people to question his ability to lead his country. Pundits have predicted that the loss to South Africa would be Gayle’s last as captain of West Indies, but Gayle suggests otherwise."I am still pushing to go on. I still have a lot to offer in that particular area. There are a few issues I need to sort out before I progress," Gayle said.
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