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The new Gayle
Windies skipper taking control of power
Monday, February 09, 2009
KINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC) - Call it what you will - the rebirth of Chris Gayle, or the transformation of Chris Gayle.
GAYLE... I think I can control my aggression now a bit more
The West Indies captain has shown a side to his batting in recent Tests that suggests he has come full circle and now appreciates putting a higher value on his wicket.
His 197 in the second innings of the recent Test against New Zealand at Napier, and his 104 in the first innings in the opening Test against England which ended on Saturday all spoke volumes of this change in his approach.
Gayle has built a reputation over the last nine years of his international career that has identified him as one of the game's most destructive batsmen.
To see him on the attack has become one of the most dazzling sights in the game, and several of the world's leading bowlers have watched helplessly as he has quite easily dismantled them.
This same raw, awesome power and huge appetite for entertainment has been his downfall in the longer version of the game in what all agree is the real examination of the quality of a true batsman - the Test match.
He has often taken the same approach to his batting over the long haul of the five-day match with dire consequences, and as a result, it has not won him a lot of admirers in the Caribbean, where people have dismissed him as purely "an entertainer" not worthy of being mentioned in the same breath with other great openers from the region like Conrad Hunte, Gordon Greenidge, and Desmond Haynes, much less contemporaries from other countries.
But this is still a player with an aggregate of 5,213 runs, an average of 40.10, and whose highest Test score is 317 against no less a side than South Africa, and has also reeled off a respectable double-hundred against a New Zealand attack that included Shane Bond and Daniel Vettori.
Having just completed his 76th Test, he is willing to acknowledge that he has paid for his petulance in the past, but he is seeking a new path to glory.
"I think I can control my aggression now a bit more," he told reporters following his side's triumph over England by an innings and 23 runs within four days at Sabina Park.
"Early in my career, when I was in full cry, I never thought about stopping. I think I have learned how to bring it under control a bit more, and it has been paying off for me."
Others have noticed including his English opponents, whose tactic to consistently feed him deliveries just wide of off-stump on a good length was not met with the usual murderous swing of Gayle's bat, but with passing interest on its way into the gloves of the 'keeper.
"They know the type of batsman that I am and they were bowling a bit wide to me, and hoping that I make a mistake," he said.
Known for his laidback demeanour which has earned him the sobriquet of 'Mr Cool', Gayle noted that he has instructed his teammates to spend more time learning the game and taking more responsibility for their performances.
Admittedly, he is not quite into the long, boring meetings, but he has made a point to them that they need to appreciate the gifts with which they have been blessed and start to make them bear fruit - advice that he himself has been taking.
"Being around for a few years now, I have been learning more and more every day about this game," he said.
"I have been learning the game, and you can never stop learning, especially this format of the game, so this is really good."
West Indies head coach John Dyson has seen up close some of the change that has come over Gayle in recent matches, and he believes it has also helped him to better manage his role of captain.
"I think he has grown and has become more comfortable with lots of aspects of the job of captain," he said.
"It is a difficult job being captain of an international cricket team. It is not just your own game about which you have to worry, you have to be concerned about the welfare of the other players around you, media commitments, responsibilities to all other sorts of areas.
"Chris has shown during the last 12 months that he is growing in that role and, at the same time, his game is maturing, and we have seen in the last six months, a Chris Gayle people were not sure was there.
"He is not just a fantastic hitter. Now, he combines his great ability to hit the ball, and hit the ball extremely hard, with a patience and an awareness of what is required in a situation. He assesses each situation and how he can handle that situation, and actually performs the role.
"So he has played some tremendous cricket in the last six months - in all forms of the game."
West Indies hope he can continue in this rich vein for much longer - particularly the next two to three months at home and away against their long-standing rivals, England.
Windies skipper taking control of power
Monday, February 09, 2009
KINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC) - Call it what you will - the rebirth of Chris Gayle, or the transformation of Chris Gayle.
GAYLE... I think I can control my aggression now a bit more The West Indies captain has shown a side to his batting in recent Tests that suggests he has come full circle and now appreciates putting a higher value on his wicket.
His 197 in the second innings of the recent Test against New Zealand at Napier, and his 104 in the first innings in the opening Test against England which ended on Saturday all spoke volumes of this change in his approach.
Gayle has built a reputation over the last nine years of his international career that has identified him as one of the game's most destructive batsmen.
To see him on the attack has become one of the most dazzling sights in the game, and several of the world's leading bowlers have watched helplessly as he has quite easily dismantled them.
This same raw, awesome power and huge appetite for entertainment has been his downfall in the longer version of the game in what all agree is the real examination of the quality of a true batsman - the Test match.
He has often taken the same approach to his batting over the long haul of the five-day match with dire consequences, and as a result, it has not won him a lot of admirers in the Caribbean, where people have dismissed him as purely "an entertainer" not worthy of being mentioned in the same breath with other great openers from the region like Conrad Hunte, Gordon Greenidge, and Desmond Haynes, much less contemporaries from other countries.
But this is still a player with an aggregate of 5,213 runs, an average of 40.10, and whose highest Test score is 317 against no less a side than South Africa, and has also reeled off a respectable double-hundred against a New Zealand attack that included Shane Bond and Daniel Vettori.
Having just completed his 76th Test, he is willing to acknowledge that he has paid for his petulance in the past, but he is seeking a new path to glory.
"I think I can control my aggression now a bit more," he told reporters following his side's triumph over England by an innings and 23 runs within four days at Sabina Park.
"Early in my career, when I was in full cry, I never thought about stopping. I think I have learned how to bring it under control a bit more, and it has been paying off for me."
Others have noticed including his English opponents, whose tactic to consistently feed him deliveries just wide of off-stump on a good length was not met with the usual murderous swing of Gayle's bat, but with passing interest on its way into the gloves of the 'keeper.
"They know the type of batsman that I am and they were bowling a bit wide to me, and hoping that I make a mistake," he said.
Known for his laidback demeanour which has earned him the sobriquet of 'Mr Cool', Gayle noted that he has instructed his teammates to spend more time learning the game and taking more responsibility for their performances.
Admittedly, he is not quite into the long, boring meetings, but he has made a point to them that they need to appreciate the gifts with which they have been blessed and start to make them bear fruit - advice that he himself has been taking.
"Being around for a few years now, I have been learning more and more every day about this game," he said.
"I have been learning the game, and you can never stop learning, especially this format of the game, so this is really good."
West Indies head coach John Dyson has seen up close some of the change that has come over Gayle in recent matches, and he believes it has also helped him to better manage his role of captain.
"I think he has grown and has become more comfortable with lots of aspects of the job of captain," he said.
"It is a difficult job being captain of an international cricket team. It is not just your own game about which you have to worry, you have to be concerned about the welfare of the other players around you, media commitments, responsibilities to all other sorts of areas.
"Chris has shown during the last 12 months that he is growing in that role and, at the same time, his game is maturing, and we have seen in the last six months, a Chris Gayle people were not sure was there.
"He is not just a fantastic hitter. Now, he combines his great ability to hit the ball, and hit the ball extremely hard, with a patience and an awareness of what is required in a situation. He assesses each situation and how he can handle that situation, and actually performs the role.
"So he has played some tremendous cricket in the last six months - in all forms of the game."
West Indies hope he can continue in this rich vein for much longer - particularly the next two to three months at home and away against their long-standing rivals, England.
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