Dropping Chris Gayle 'Very Hard Decision For Us': KL Rahul

Chris Gayle, one on the most feared T20 batsman, is yet to feature in the IPL 2020. Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) captain KL Rahul decided to go without Chris Gayle in the inaugural two fixtures in the IPL 2020. This comes as a surprise for many as Gayle and Rahul had forged key partnerships in the previous edition of IPL.

Rahul said that Gayle has been the biggest match-winner in T20 cricket and to drop him in the initial matches has been pretty difficult decisions to take for the franchise. He also said that Gayle has returned well after the lockdown and looking fit and getting stronger with every passing day.

“Chris Gayle has been the biggest match-winner in T20 cricket and to not play a match-winner like Chris is a very hard decision for us. The way he has come back after lockdown, the way he is batting, he is getting fitter and stronger by the day.

“He is striking the ball really well and some point in the tournament he will have a huge role to play,” Rahul said during a conversation on InsideSport’s ‘Amstrad Face 2 Face Cricket Series’.

Gayle is one of the cleanest hitters off the ball and when his bat does the talking he is hard to be stopped. Veteran West Indies batsman Gayle has established himself as a powerful striker of the ball not only for his national team but also in franchise leagues across the world. Today, there is hardly any league left, where Chris Gayle has not made his presence felt.

From Afghanistan Premier League (APL) to Global T20 Canada League, Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and Everest Premier League (EPL) — Gayle has played almost everywhere.

Gayle has played 404 T20 matches. He has scored over 13000 runs at an average of 38.20 with the high score of an unbeaten 175. He has incredibly hit 22 centuries and 82 half-centuries in this format.