A Review: Chris Gayle & The PSL
Cricket is one of the most watched games in the world. With events like the ICC World Cup, ICC World T20 Cup, The Ashes etc., it is nothing short of a world famous sport. The competition to win these prestigious trophies is usually really tough. To make their teams more competitive, some countries like India, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan & West Indies have started their own leagues in which players of the hosting country play alongside other international players. Pakistan Super League (PSL) was initiated in 2016. There are 5 teams currently in the competition; Lahore Qalanders, Karachi Kings, Peshawar Zalmi, Islamabad United and Quetta Gladiators. Each team can include 5 foreign players in their line ups. Chris Gayle, aka “Gayle Storm”, the West Indian player with one of the best averages in T20 internationals was bought by Lahore Qalanders amid much fanfare. The T20 stats of Chris Gayle are shown below:
These stats are enough to prove his worth in T20’s. The expectations from such a player are always very high and when the PSL started, everyone expected him to be the highlight of the tournament. However, Chris Gayle played 5 matches with Lahore Qalanders in PSL 2016 before they got knocked out of the tournament. Stats of Chris Gayle’s performance in PSL 2016 are as follows:
The average of Chris for PSL 2016 was quite low as compared to his T20 international record, although there can be certain reasons for this performance such as pitch conditions. In cricket, one of the important things is the ground pitch which can either be easy for the batsmen or it can be a heaven for the bowlers. Nevertheless, one can’t say the Gayle has lost his magical factor and can’t play international cricket anymore. A true cricket fan knows that there are times which are really hard for a player to cope with and maybe PSL 2016 it was one of those times for Chris Gayle.
The second edition of PSL recently started and some changes were made in the teams. This time, Lahore Qalanders traded Chris Gayle for Sohail Tanveer with Karachi Kings. PSL 2017 was played in the UAE just like PSL 2016 albeit with one major difference; the final match of PSL 2017 was to be played in Lahore. Chris Gayle could not cheer up his fans in the second season too. Playing for Karachi Kings, he could only manage scores of 2, 10, 5, 2, 11, 29 and 17 during the seven group matches. There was just one exceptional innings from the player, in which Chris smashed 44 runs in 17 balls, leading to victory against Islamabad United and into the second play-offs. However, his 40 run innings in the second play-off was not enough as Karachi Kings fell to Peshawar Zalmi and were knocked out of the tournament. Chris Gayle apologized to his fans after his dismal performance in Pakistan Super League 2017.
Although his performances weren’t as good as we have become used to in recent years, Gayle still provided us with some moments of magic. We hope that he rediscovers his form soon, and entertains the crowds with his mighty sixes and his unstoppable fours.
“Sixes and fours, I’ll give you your sixes and fours Okay. If it doesn’t happen my bad,” said the aggressive West Indies batsman in a video. Gayle also said that he would not give up and would always try his best for the team.
Edited by Fakhir Munir.
References (For Stats & Statements)
[1] http://www.cricketcountry.com/players/chris-gayle/
[2] https://timesofislamabad.com/psl-2017-chris-gayle-apologises-to-karachi-fans/2017/02/25/
[3] http://stats.espncricinfo.com/pakistan-super-league-2015- 16/engine/records/averages/batting_bowling_by_team.html?id=10555;team=5799;type=tournament