… Calls on fans to continue showing their support
THE West Indies team arrived in Guyana and are all brimming with confidence ahead of the ICC Twenty20 World Cup but skipper Chris Gayle made it clear that while fans around the Caribbean will be rooting for the West Indies and looking for the side to do well, the Jamaican said that it’s not going to be an easy road.
Gayle, speaking at his first press conference which was held at the Pegasus spoke about his team’s readiness to participate in the event that begins on Friday with a double- header where he will lead the maroons against Ireland.
Several sections of the media both local and international, have tipped the West Indies as a top contender for the silverware because many believe that their style of play in recent times is more suited to the shortest format of the game and also, they have been doing extremely well in T20 cricket.
However, when bowled with the question of being favourites in the competition Gayle said “I don’t think we are favourites even though we are playing home, because if you look at the other teams like India, based on their players in the IPL that’s the team that was actually selected for the T20 World Cup, so it’s not a situation whereby you’re going to put pressure on us and say, well, we are actually favourites because we are playing at home. Its more difficult for us to win because of the high expectations”.
Jamaican Gayle stated that “T20 is always going to be challenging; when you look out there there are always going to be good teams so it’s not going to be an easy road for us because every team has a good or a particular balance in their side so it’s going to be very competitive. Like I said, it’s going to be an enjoyable one/ The atmosphere in the Caribbean is always good and it will be a good turnout and the supporters will come out to support the West Indies”.
West Indies, like many of the other teams involved in the tournament this year, had four of its players from the T20 World Cup squad playing in the Indian Cricket league (IPL) in India and Gayle who played for the Kolkata Knight Riders believed that it was more than valuable playing time for them, though the conditions here is much different.
The West Indies team played undefeated in the recently concluded Jamaican Cricket festival, playing against the Irish, Canada and Jamaica, and Gayle pointed out “When you look at the all-rounders in the team, you know we have guys there – Pollard (Keiron), Bravo (Dwayne), Narsingh (Deonarine) – its very well balanced there are a lot of guys there who can be match-winners so, it’s going to be good; we just need a particular start and we’ll take it from there”.
Known as ‘Gayle Force’ and of recent ‘The Calypso Thunder’, the 31-year-old left-handed batsman is one of the world’s top hitter in T20 Cricket and he is also credited with being the first person to score the first century in a Twenty20 International fixture when he blasted 117 runs off 57 that included 10 sixes when the West Indies played South Africa in the first installation of the T20 World Cup in South Africa 2007.
With an average of 48.25 in T20 cricket, Gayle acknowledged his role with the bat for the home side and said that while he’s had a decent stint in the IPL this year, things are a bit different.
“I’ve had a few runs in the IPL but it’s different conditions here back home again so I just have to make the necessary adjustment, have a few nets and hopefully we move from there; so it’s going to be good especially with me having a part to play at the top of the order, “ said Gayle.
Speaking of his team’s effort with the ball, the skipper added “We have Jerome Taylor back, he’s been out with injuries and we have Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul in the fast bowling department and when you look at it that’s a steady line-up and when you look at the all-rounders – Bravo, Pollard they can play that role with the ball in the middle and then Benn and Narsingh. So all we have to do is to not take things for granted”
The West Indies will now only play one warm-up match which is against New Zealand tomorrow at Providence since their opponents for today’s game; Afghanistan, had found themselves caught in the flight disruption in Europe due to the thick clot of volcanic ashes from Iceland.
Nevertheless, Gayle said that the situation was beyond them and that the single warm-up match will be significant especially for the selector since the best team will have to represent the region.
“I think we should try and get the balance right leading up to the first game.
We want our best team to play the warm-up games so we can gain that momentum in this tournament and that will be our first priority. So everyone right now is eligible for selection. Like I said earlier, when you look at the side, everyone could play a part with the bat and with the ball so it’s very good for us and in the outfield, we have some tremendous fielders,” said Gayle.