West Indies legend Chris Gayle has made a rallying call for Caribbean fans and well-wishers to support the cricket teams and rise above the malaise that presently covers the sport around the region.
The two-time ICC T20 World Cup winner in 2012 and 2016 and self-proclaimed Universe Boss, said the time has long come for all stakeholders to shed the negativity and unite for the betterment of the “best thing we have in the West Indies”.
“Cricket unites us. We might be many countries, but at the end of the day, we are one nation, one team . . . and we’re a great cricket nation. West Indies cricket is a huge brand around the world, and we must rally round the West Indies. There are challenges in our cricket, we know this, but we have the players with the ability to rise to the challenge, both men and women. So, I want to urge the people to never give up on West Indies cricket,” Gayle said.
The 45-year-old Jamaican, who scored 10 480 runs in 301 One-Day Internationals with 25 centuries, including a highest score of 215, was speaking in an exclusive interview from India where he is preparing for a sensational comeback in the International Masters Tournament.
Gayle, who also made 7 214 runs in 103 Tests with a highest score of 333 and scored 1 899 runs in 79 T20 Internationals, is part of the West Indies team, led by Brian Lara. There are six Barbadians in the squad – Kirk Edwards, Fidel Edwards, Tino Best, Sulieman Benn, Dwayne Smith and Ashley Nurse.
They will play against India, England, Australia, South Africa, and Sri Lanka, starting Monday.
Gayle, who is the only West Indian to make a doublecentury at Cricket World Cup also added that the heartache of missing out on the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan and Dubai should serve as a motivation factor to get the game back to its place of primacy.
Beat England
On a cold, damp evening on September 22, 2004, West Indies beat England to capture the Champions Trophy title at the Oval in London. Gayle was in the team on that historic night and said the moment filled him with immense “pride and great joy to be a West Indies champion”.
Unfortunately, West Indies
missed out on participation in the 2025 edition due to their low ranking at the cutoff point for the cut-throat event. The participating eight teams are Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, South Africa, New Zealand and Pakistan, the bona fide hosts.
“It’s good to have the Champions Trophy back on the international calendar. This is a great tournament for the players to showcase on the world stage. I wish the West Indies were there. I remember back in 2004 when we beat England, with the great batting of Ian Bradshaw and Courtney Browne and that brought glory to the West Indies fans,” Gayle said.
“It would have been really nice to see our West Indies boys there, but we didn’t make the cut. We’re not in this tournament and we need to use this as motivation to get back in the top rankings of the (50-over) format and be counted. We must play with heart and make every game count. That must be the attitude. We didn’t make the World Cup either (in India 2023), so you see, we have some work to do. We have been playing some good cricket, and as I said before we have the calibre of players to get us back on track.”
At the time of writing, West Indies were on tenth. The captain, Shai Hope, is the highest ranked batter in tenth spot, while the highest ranked bowler is Gudakesh Motie at eighth. (PS)
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