Chris Gayle played his first innings since January, scored a half-century, and brought with him the entertainment – on and off the field.
Coming in at No 3 instead of his usual opening position, the 41-year-old scored 53 (off 45 balls) and put up a 93-run stand with Rahul for the second wicket as Kings XI Punjab ended their five-match losing streak against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Thursday, 15 October.
Gayle was at his animated best at the post-match presentation ceremony. Asked if he was nervous with the close finish of the game, he said, “Not really. Come on man, it is the Universe Boss batting, how can I be nervous. I might give you a heart attack, I thought I had it in the bag, but strange things happen in cricket.”
On his comeback to cricket, Gayle said, “It was a good innings, my first in IPL 2020 and now I can make myself available for 2021. I can get out of the bubble now and go.”
Former England cricketer and commentator Kevin Pietersen pointed out that this was only the sixth time in 379 games that Gayle had batted at the number 3 spot. To that he said, “Team asked me to do a job and it wasn’t an issue. The openers had been batting well throughout the tournament and we didn’t want to trouble that. Mayank and the captain have given us fantastic starts in the IPL,” Gayle said.
“I accepted the job and delivered tonight. Thankful that everybody got a chance to see a bit of Chris. The win was more important for the team.”Chris Gayle
On reaching the fifty-run mark, Gayle pointed to a sticker on his bat that read ‘The Boss’. However veteran Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar pointed out that he was holding it upside down. After a good laugh, the West Indies cricketer said, “You got the picture right. All I was saying, put some respect on the name. That’s all,” he added.
Speaking on his fitness, Gayle said: “I thought it was important to keep fit, I don’t want to be on the bench but I was enjoying it. Apart from the sickness, I have been getting fitter,” he added.
“I thought it was important to keep fit, I don't like being on the bench but I was enjoying it and apart from the sickness I have been getting fitter,” Gayle said.
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