Chris Gayle asks Punjab to keep playing him
Chris Gayle is a phenomenon. As he likes to call him, he is the Universe Boss. His name was snubbed twice in the Indian Premier League auction before Preity Zinta raised the bar and signed him for his base price of 2 crore rupees ($305,833) – which caused the representatives of the other teams to applaud the occasion.
Such is the power of the man that his mere name in the starting XI last night sent many people into a frenzy – and so did his batting. He smashed 63 from 33 balls and helped Punjab to 92 runs in the first seven overs, that eventually helped them reach a score 197.
When speaking about his performance, Gayle revealed that he was feeling younger than ever before and added that he is back.
"I've never felt so young in my entire life before. I'm feeling like (I'm) 25 (years old). The Universe Boss is back."
He also revealed that his inclusion in the starting XI was made known to him on the morning of the match via a text.
"This morning I got a text saying you'll be playing today so I grabbed the opportunity with both hands. I've been waiting patiently, (and) I've got the chance today to make the best use of it. It's good to be back."
He then went on to laud himself – something that he almost always does and something that makes him one of the most interesting characters in the game – stating that he is always looking for the boundaries and that Punjab should give the fans the Gayle-storm that they all love to see.
"That's Chris Gayle for you, once he's on the go he's not going to be looking for singles – once you have momentum you're always going to try and keep the bowler under a bit of pressure," Gayle said.
"The fact is that I'm here and the fans want to see the Universe Boss, so give the Universe Boss to the fans."
Speaking about his confidence, the big West Indian affirmed that it is going to stay with him till he breathes.
"The batting will always be there, to be honest, it won't leave the Universe Boss until I call this game quits," he said.
"(The confidence) will never leave, I'll take that to the grave."
With Finch’s consecutive golden ducks, Gayle’s place in the team has become more important as his batting suits the aggressiveness ethos that Punjab practice in their play. The Universe Boss has 11000-plus runs in the format and Punjab could actually win the title if Gayle holds his consistency.
Picture credit: BCCI
