Gayle lambastes WICB & Coach Gibson

Apr 21, 2011 Sports

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Chris Gayle

Says Coach ‘messed up’ Sarwan mentally during CWC

By Sean Devers

Former West Indies Captain Chris Gayle yesterday launched a stinging attack on the West Indies Cricket Board and Coach Otis Gibson during an interview broadcast on Jamaican Radio Station Klass Sports Radio.
Kaieteur News also received additional quotes via telephone messages from a very emotional Gayle who is now in India to represent the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL T20 competition after he was not selected for today’s T20 and the first two ODIs against Pakistan in St Lucia.
The 31-year-old Gayle was responding to a West Indies Cricket Board release which expressed disappointment in him accepting the ILP offer.
The WICB said it did not accept Gayle’s reason for making himself unavailable but as he has already clearly made his choice and has traveled to India, the Regional Board did not wish to stand in his way.
“The WICB is most disappointed in the manner in which Gayle has handled the entire situation, especially given the mature and cooperative manner in which two other players who refused contracts – Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard – made themselves available for selection and agreed to an understanding in the best interest of West Indies cricket.” The WICB release said.
“I can’t sleep properly. I need to get this off my chest. I want everybody to print what I said, I want to clear the air and I want them to ease up. WICB… back up offa my back.” Gayle said during the live Radio interview.
“They are making too much press release now. Nobody knows what Chris thinking. They going overboard now, putting out all kinds of releases. So I decided to clear the air,” Gayle said.
“I was forced to make this decision based on what was happening around me. Based on what happened to Sarwan and Chanderpaul. I wanted to play. I wanted to represent West Indies. That was my ultimate goal. Based on what was happening, I had to make that decision. An opportunity presented itself… a T20 squad was named, an ODI squad was named… listen, I had no other choice but to take the IPL contract.” Gayle informed.
The Jamaican opener said he was forced to make the decision to go India to play IPL after the squad was named and he wasn’t informed about anything and took matters into his own hands.
“As soon as I asked for the NOC everything mash-up! Emails start coming in left and right. I was playing cricket under a lot of pressure. I wasn’t supposed to be at that World Cup… over one little simple thing. The CEO threatened me. I was threatened by the CEO that I will get dropped over one simple bit of information,” Gayle revealed.
“I got a note from CEO to sign the World Cup contract. I replied to CEO asking if WIPA approved of the contract. The reply from the CEO, which was copied to all three selectors and coach and lawyer and CEO, stated that we have someone on standby, if you don’t sign this contract, you will be replaced for the World Cup. That eat me out during the World Cup.”
“I’m the perfect target for them. They want to get rid of me. They want to get rid of WIPA. That’s all this is about… to get rid of WIPA. I’m still available for selection for West Indies in future series. I’m still the hardest fighting cricketer for WI. Me willing fe dead out for WI cricket. Some things I do, nuff players never do yet.” Gayle added.
“One leg, me tek injection, and still go mek runs. Tek catch with one hand. Nuff man sit down and cock up dem foot,” said Gayle.
The pugnacious left-hander explained that he wasn’t selected for IPL originally at auction because of e-mails from the WICB indicating that he won’t be available due to the Pakistan tour to the West Indies.
“I called a meeting with the coach and team to ask if he said bad things about me… That was my last game as captain. He denied all this. I didn’t know all these things were written about me by the coach. If there is one coach that got my all, it was Otis Gibson,” Gayle said after learning that Gibson had sent a report to the WICB questioning his leadership qualities after the T20 World Cup.
“They say they have unproductive talk with Chris Gayle. I wrote to the board asking for a simple NOC for Big Bash and IPL. I never heard from them. Sri Lanka tour came up. I got a triple hundred in the Test match. The CEO then called asking what I wanted to do pertaining to IPL. I said I’d love to play full IPL. The CEO said “no, that can’t work…” Gayle informed.
“In Sri Lanka when I got the triple century. I said to myself that I’ll give Test cricket a break. I was going through a lot. I was going back and forth in my mind. Pressure was piling up. I didn’t make any decision. I didn’t know what CEO discussed with Bravo and Pollard. I didn’t know about their productive talk with ‘the doctor’.” Gayle informed.
“They want to question me about my commitment to WI cricket? I break my finger and still bat. You know who is the most hardcore cricketer for West Indies? You know who that is…. Chris Gayle,” he said, constantly referring to himself in the third person.
He said if any player can come out publicly and say they were in the right frame of mind to play cricket during the World Cup “ah lie dem a tell.”
“Me and Sarwan sit down and talk after the World Cup. Sarwan was messed up mentally. The coach messed up the man mentally. The players were not in the right frame of mind. Sarwan was batting without a free mind. Players told me they lost confidence. A player speaks his mind in team meetings openly… The player said his piece… After that, he never play another World Cup match. But me talk with my mouth and me talk with my bat,” the former Skipper said.
“They’re using the fitness thing to threaten players. You can make ten ducks in a row and still make the team… as long as you fit like a fiddle… That’s the system they have now… fitness, fitness, fitness 24/7. Man to man, Australia team no fitter than we. You think India fitter than we?” “Ah joke Coach Otis Gibson ah mek!” a fired up Gayle lashed out.
“Wavell (Hinds) played the T20 World Cup. He was 32 yrs. The coach look to him and say Wavell, you too old, you not in my programme. Two days later, Dale Richards came in and he’s older than Wavell. My bat do my talking. You check the stats. That’s how I survived for so long… You check the stats. Chris Gayle don’t interfere with people. I do things willingly from my heart. I sacrifice my work ethic to help other players. But I always get the blame,” Gayle pointed out.
“I was called into a room in front of all the selectors… people in front of computers… asking why I didn’t sign (retainer) contract. I told them it did not sound right. The contract covers everything from WI cricket to local club cricket. If Lucas want me to play, I can’t go and play nowhere else. The contract ties me down to everything… to West Indies, to Jamaica, to club level…”
“The WICB can stop me from everything… they can determine every move I make. I didn’t sign the retainer because I didn’t want to be bogged down. They have someone on the computer taking minutes. They can publish it publicly and let people see what my explanation was,” the veteran of 91 Tests and 228 ODIs, said.
“I wanted to go and captain the team at the World Cup. Otis Gibson had just come on board, he begged me to stay as captain. That’s why I couldn’t believe those things he (Gibson) said about me. He saying I lacked leadership. I wasn’t officially appointed as captain for the WC. The same coach, when his back was against the wall, who did he turn to? He turned to Chris Gayle. I played my role, I gave my input,” Gayle claimed.
“I hope this interview is going all over the world. I’m clearing my name. Don’t come putting me as a bad apple. Another thing… as much as people wants to look at WIPA as bad. Current players and players to come in the future, if there’s no WIPA, y’all are going to suffer. Y’all should thank WIPA. WIPA has done a lot for players locally, internationally, the grassroots,” the left-hander with 13 Test and 19 ODI centuries pointed out.
Gayle, who averages 41.65 in Tests, said he has always respected Sammy as a person but feels it was not the right time for him to be named captain.
“He wasn’t cemented in the team. It created animosity in the team within the final XI. We could never get the balance right. In the ODI format, it messed up the XI to play Sammy.”
“I’m not boasting or anything. Whether I’m captain or not, I can still get the best out of the players. The respect level is still high. Whether I am captain or not,” Gayle stressed.

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