COLOMBO – Impressive West Indies opening batsman Chris Gayle says he has only one wish to celebrate his 33rd birthday today.
“Beating Australia!,” Gayle said when asked by WEEKEND SPORT yesterday at the Colts Cricket Ground about what he wished for on his special day.
His wish comes on the eve of the West Indies’ first match at the ICC World Twenty20 as they get ready to play Australia at the Premadassa Stadium tomorrow night (10 a.m. Barbados time).
“No real big plans . . . am going to spend it (birthday) with the West Indies women’s team,” he added.
“I’ll be 33, so I’m really looking forward to it. I’m looking to celebrate with a win over Australia on Saturday night.”
The team looked in high spirits while training at Colts, a ground resembling an English-type county facility with several pitches on the square, a lush green outfield and practice nets away from the main ground, with a spacious pavilion to boot.
“In our team we bat right down and bowling-wise we have spinners and fast bowlers. The key for us is to get to the second round and try and take it step by step.
“The first game is vital. You don’t want to play catch-up cricket in T20, so it’s a very big match for us. It will also get our confidence going,” Gayle said.
The left-handed opener has dominated all three formats of the game. He has reached a triple-hundred in Test cricket on two occasions. His highest score of 333 came against Sri Lanka in Galle two years ago.
Gayle has scored a West Indies record 20 centuries in One-Day Internationals. He is also the most feared batsman in Twenty20 cricket.
His 117 against South Africa at the Wanderers in 2007 is the only century by a West Indian in the shortest format and he has hit a world-record 290 sixes in 110 T20 matches.
He revealed that his new-look “red socks” are not the real reason for his super hitting and renewed focus that comes from hard practice.
“It takes a bit of strength work, to be honest, and once the ball is in your slot you go for it. I am sure everyone can hit a six these days. It doesn’t seem so hard these days, with everybody getting big bats, and clearing the boundary is easy.
“So it’s one of those things – you try and get a start and once you are set, you can take advantage of the conditions once you get accustomed to all the bowlers,” he said.
Meanwhile, mystery spinner Sunil Narine told WEEKEND SPORT he was quite eager to be playing in his first World Cup and has taken notes from Sri Lanka off-spinner Ajantha Mendis, who took six for eight in the opening game
“I think he [Mendis] is brilliant and the wickets here seem quite friendly for spin, so I am looking forward to bowling once given the opportunity,” he said.
“I won’t be trying to break his record but just looking to do my best and if I get six wickets or more, well great.”
The teams will be greeted with a very rough outfield which has drawn complaints.