CHESTER-LE-STREET, England, CMC – West Indies captain Chris Gayle yesterday played down media reports that he was about to quit Test cricket and captaincy of the Caribbean side.
On the eve of the must-win second Test match against England at the Riverside Ground, Gayle declared that he was “misquoted and misinterpreted” and suggested the issue would not sidetrack the West Indies from their bid to win.
“We’re all big men, it won’t affect our performance. We have to get on with it. It’s not a case of what I’ve said upsetting the team,” Gayle said.
The Guardian newspaper in England reported Tuesday that Gayle, bothered by heavy criticism about his late arrival – from the IPL — for the series and the first Test defeat, revealed that he would be giving up the captaincy shortly because of the pressures of the job.
“I will be giving it up shortly,” the Guardian quoted him as saying.
Gayle conceded yesterday that the rigors of Test cricket have been taking a toll on his body but he denied suggestions in the Guardian story that a decision by him to quit was imminent.
“I am definitely not giving up the captaincy after this Test match. I think I still have a big part to play in West Indies cricket,” Gayle said.
He added that his views published in the newspaper were “as an individual” and were him being honest.
“That’s how I felt at the time. I share my views, that’s how it is,” he said.
While the West Indies were preparing for the first Test, Gayle had been playing lucrative IPL cricket for the Kolkata Knight Riders in South Africa and only arrived in England 48 hours before the start of the Lord’s Test.
He made 28 and 0 as West Indies crumbled to a 10-wicket defeat inside three days and incurred a barrage of criticism questioning where his priorities were.
Gayle tossed negative comments directed at him aside and asserted his determination to lead the Windies into their crucial assignment today.
“I am committed to West Indies cricket. As a player I am totally focused on the upcoming match,” he said.
The powerful Jamaican left-handed batsman said that his recent struggles with injuries have made him more wary of planning the next stage of his career.
“A lot of cricket is being played – check the itinerary – and I started developing a lot of injuries,” Gayle said.
“It takes a toll on your body and your mental strength. It can drain you a bit,” said Gayle, who the Guardian quoted Tuesday as saying he preferred Twenty20 cricket to Test cricket.
“You’re not going to go on forever and at some stage you have to choose what you want to do as a person,” he said yesterday as he sought to clarify comments he made to the Guardian.
Gayle’s reported comments on Tuesday, two days ahead of the crucial second Test had startled West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president Julian Hunte, who described the comments as “unfortunate” and bound “to have an effect on the whole spirit of the team”.
