International grind getting to Gayle

[Sachinism]

Chris Gayle has said that he doesn't want to captain West Indies for much longer because of the pressure the job entailed. Gayle also said that he "wouldn't be so sad" if Test cricket eventually gave way to the Twenty20 version and hit back at Andrew Strauss, who had criticised the West Indies captain for arriving from the IPL just two days before the start of the Lord's Test, asking the England captain to "stay out of [other] people's business". "To be honest with you there's a possibility I might give it [captaincy] up - I will be giving it up shortly," Gayle told the Guardian. "It's definitely not something I'm looking to hang on to. I need some time for myself, to be honest with you, it's a lot of travelling. There's always something you have to go and do, you know, extra. Lunch or dinner, some other thing, there's always something for the captain. I'm not that type of person. I can't take on too much. So soon I will be handing over this captaincy. I [will] soon finish with it." Gayle, who took over the captaincy from Ramnaresh Sarwan in 2007, said he was looking for potential successors. "We're still looking at quite a few," he said. "So we just have to wait and see when the selectors decide - or whosoever decides. Then I'm ready. The chairman pointed out to me they want me to actually be the captain for right now. We have to see how it goes. I said, 'Don't be too long, though'." Gayle took over the captaincy in the absence of Sarwan who was injured for the ODI series against England in 2007. The West Indies board initially rejected the selectors' move to appoint Gayle before reversing its decision. Gayle revealed that he was reluctant to take over the captaincy and had to be persuaded into the role. "At the time when I was asked I didn't want to be the captain," he said. "That's when it all started. We won the series and then I said to them, whenever Sarwan is fully fit, I am ready to step down. Maybe they saw something different, something totally different, and they asked me to be captain. "I thought hard about it. I didn't want to be captain. I wanted to have more free time. I didn't want that added pressure at that particular time, but they actually insist, insist, insist, so I said OK. So I thought, just get on with it." Gayle was then preferred as captain over Sarwan for the 2007-08 tour of South Africa. He resigned at a West Indies directors' meeting last July following the home series against Australia due to disagreements over selection but was persuaded to stay on by WICB president Julian Hunte. Gayle was the subject of much criticism for extending his IPL stint with the Kolkata Knight Riders and joining his West Indies team-mates only 48 hours before the first Test at Lord's, a match which they lost inside three days. Strauss had said that "we wouldn't want our players to arrive two days before" a Test. He added that it was important for Test cricket to get the attention it deserved and that it shouldn't be devalued in "any way, shape or form". Gayle, however, responded to Strauss's comments by saying that the matter "doesn't concern him". "Focus on his team, don't worry about West Indies, don't worry about me. Tell him don't sleep with Chris on his mind, tell him get Chris off his mind," Gayle said. While Gayle said he wouldn't be worried if the primacy of Test cricket were to be reduced, he said Strauss ought to be because the England captain may not be able to adapt to the shorter format. Strauss, who is England's Test and ODI captain, isn't part of the squad for the World Twenty20 in June. "I wouldn't be so sad [about the demise of Test cricket]," Gayle said. "Some other players would be. Maybe Andrew Strauss would be sad. Maybe he will be sad if Test cricket dies and Twenty20 comes in. Because there is no way he can make the change. So tough luck. I like Twenty20. Who doesn't? Maybe a couple of the Englishmen wouldn't like to play Twenty20." Responding to Gayle's criticism of his comments, Strauss told Sky Sports: "I was answering a question about the future of Test cricket. I believe very strongly Test cricket should be the ultimate form of the game, and therefore we should prepare for Test matches in a manner befitting that. "I feel if our players turned up two days before that wouldn't give us enough time to prepare properly, but Chris' views on Test cricket and the future of that are his own opinion and I don't really get drawn into that. The last thing I want to concentrate on is what is happening with the West Indies squad, that is not of great importance to us really." "For me personally I think Test cricket is the ultimate form of the game," said Strauss. "I think it is a true test of character, temperament and technique and I think the majority of cricketers around the world still think that. Hopefully that is the case and hopefully there are not more and more players that don't want to play Test cricket. I think that would be a very sad day for the game." http://content.cricinfo.com/engvwi2009/content/current/story/404102.html

[Ram]

I dont know how smart it is to actually say it, to the media. From now on, if the Windies lose, speculation will be rife about Gayle's committment to the job and how does not really too enthused on the job. This will make it harder for him.

[Lurker]

It was quite startling to hear his utterance really. In a way this is a fall-out of IPL. Gayle's mention of 20-20 ahead of Test cricket would not go down well with purists. I have to seriously wonder how many cricket players today are thinking on these lines?

[Don Sharma]

I think Gayle wanted to have a dig at Strauss so he has mentioned that he wouldn't be saddened by Test cricket's demise while Strauss should be.He himself knows that tests are topmost priority. Mind you the WI players, even though reluctant to tour England didn't put up a fight against the board unlike SL.

[Feed]

International grind getting to Gayle West Indies captain Chris Gayle admitted the volume of international cricket his side were being asked to play was starting to get to him following their Test series humbling by England. More... International grind getting to Gayle 19 May 2009, 1131 hrs IST, AFP ENGLAND: West Indies captain Chris Gayle admitted the volume of international cricket his side were being asked to play was starting to get to him following their Test series humbling by England. The West Indies were thrashed by an innings and 83 runs at the Riverside here on Monday in the second of this two-match series after England took the opener at Lord's by 10 wickets. However, the West Indies only found themselves playing in the early part of an English season after Sri Lanka, England's scheduled opponents, pulled out because of their players Indian Premier League (IPL) commitments. Gayle, much criticised for arriving from the lucrative Twenty20 IPL tournament in South Africa just two days before the Lord's Test, found himself embroiled in fresh controversy when he suggested he would not have a problem if the five-day format died out. England's Test and One-day tour of the Caribbean only ended in April and the West Indies now have little time to rest before a three-match One-day series in England starts at Headingley on Thursday. Then comes June's World Twenty20 in England before they return home for four One-dayers against India and a series in the Caribbean against Bangladesh. And they are then off on their travels again for the Champions Trophy in South Africa before a tour of Australia. "It has been a lot of cricket," opening batsman Gayle told reporters. "It boils down to the mental side of things, not the physical - and it has been non-stop for us, and is jam-packed for the rest of the year as well. "You have to look after yourself, and the mental part is key. "There's no two ways about it. At some stage you will find you lapse a bit, and you have to be aware of that." However, Gayle said fixture congestion was not the reason why his side lost the Test series so emphatically after defeating England 1-0 in a five-match campaign in the Caribbean. "It's been a disappointing result in both matches, and for part of it we do feel we have ourselves to blame," said Gayle. "It all started from that first Test match when we dropped too many catches (six in all) when we could have had England on the run. Then to play catch-up cricket in these conditions is always a little bit difficult. "We're here to do our job - and we didn't go about it properly. "They (England) played good cricket and used the conditions well; we didn't make that necessary adjustment." But Gayle said the experience of playing in early season English conditions, where the ball can nip off the pitch, would ultimately benefit his largely youthful side. "I've learned a lot from it, though, and I'm sure the all the guys have gained experience from this as well. "No one ever said it was going to be easy for those young players, but it is good for them to have got a taste of Test cricket." England won their One-day series in the Caribbean 3-2, having been gifted victory in Guyana when West Indies coach John Dyson, the former Australia batsman, misinterpreted the Duckworth-Lewis rule for rain-affected matches. West Indies though remain a handy One-day side and Gayle, whose second innings 54 at the Riverside off 43 would not have looked out of place in a limited overs match, said: "We still have three ODI games to look forward to - and we hope we can win that series. "It will be a tough task, but we will just have to regroup again." Meanwhile Gayle insisted he was still happy to carry on as West Indies captain despite his indifference towards Test cricket. "I'm definitely enjoying the captaincy," he said. "It's done a lot for me as an individual, and I am grateful for that. "I'm happy to lead the West Indies team - whenever, wherever."