Chris Gayle Explains The Key To His Successful Partnership with KL Rahul For KXIP

While Kings XI Punjab may have struggled with middle-order, there is no denying that the franchise has one of the best and the destructive opening combinations. KL Rahul and Chris Gayle came together in 2018 and wreaked havoc on the opposition from the get-go. In the show “Open Nets with Mayank”, Chris Gayle has delineated the reason behind their success as openers.

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Ever since 2018, KL Rahul and Chris Gayle have stitched together three century-partnerships, the first of which came in April 2018 against Kolkata Knight Riders. The next two arrived against Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings in 2019. While Gayle hasn’t been as consistent as before, Rahul scored more than 500 runs in the last two editions. The 28-year-old would have served as a captain in the 2020 season.

While admitting that the dot-ball count would increase while they are at the crease, Chris Gayle said that they would assure each other not to panic. The repeated assurances facilitate them to compensate for all the dot balls later in the innings.

“There has been a lot of occasions when the dot ball count would go up while we are at the crease. But we would often tell each other not to panic at an early stage. This is because we could always make up for the dot balls at a later stage,” Chris Gayle said.

I understood that even during IPL, he runs on Jamaica time: KL Rahul on Chris Gayle

KL Rahul comically revealed that at times Chris Gayle woke up barely an hour ago but always try to maintain their concentration on the match situation. Nevertheless, the Indian-keeper admits that the veteran West Indian is nothing short of a nightmare on the 22-yard pitch.

“While batting, we generally try to be in the zone and we have very few conversations. But there has been a couple of times when Gayle looked really sleepy. I would ask him about what time he woke up and would say ‘just an hour ago’. I understood that even during IPL, he runs on Jamaica time. However, when he walks out in the middle, he is a nightmare for the bowlers,” he added.

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