Chris Gayle willing to quit West Indies captaincy

[shivfan]

Originally Posted by Noble One

Agree with the opinion that Chris Gayle does not appear to be the most willing of captains. Gayle would be more than happy to just stand at slip all day, send down some over’s, then have a swing with the bat; nothing more.

Cannot ignore that he is one of the more successful West Indian captains in years. But it is hard to suggest that Gayle's captaincy has been a reason for the turnaround in West Indian fortunes. That can be attributed to certain talented individuals stepping up there game (Sarwan, Taylor).

I hope he stays on as captain. Never been a fan of Sarwan as leader, Chanderpaul doesn’t require the burden and none of the other players are secure enough in the team to hold the captaincy role. For cricketing fans, it is great for the game to have Gayle in-charge. Possibly the most unique personality in the game. He provides us with numerous opportunities to discuss different aspects of the game. Can you really imagine Andrew Strauss, Ricky Ponting, Dan Vettori coming out with such articles? Hardly.

We have to look at the recent history of WI captaincy, and in comparison, Gayle has been successful....

That cannot be ignored.

However, it is unfortunate that he's considering giving it up. I hope he'll re-consider, because he's achieved something that has been missing from the WI team for many years - team unity.

That is more important, IMHO, than being an astute mind or leader. I really can't see Ramdin taking on the dual role of Test captain and wicketkeeper. The only other candidate for Test captain, IMO, is Sarwan....

[Goughy]

I think there are a lot of factors in play here reflecting well and poorly on a number of people.

I dont like Gayle (granted Ive never met him). I dont like his attitude, I dislike his demeanor, I think he looks and acts like a clown and I almost find him offensive to look at.

That said, he is perfectly justified to like different things to me and to others. If Gayle prefers T20 to Test cricket then that is a personal choice. Obviously people are not all cut from the same cloth. Just because I dont like the mentality (or at least the mentality publicly presented) of Gayle doesnt mean he shouldnt be able to pursue what he like. Different personality types should be able to do what pleases them, rather than being shackled by the thoughts of others.

Though clearly, this isnt good news for the bigger picture of WI cricket.

With T20, things will come to a head soon. I think it is essential that we retain the right to criticize players for certain decisions (eg playing T20 over Tests) but never deny them their choices to do so.

[Pratters]

[shivfan]

Originally Posted by Beamer

I think Gayle was having fun with the reporter tbh.

I have followed his entire career closely and I believe he has taken a 'fugg the press' approach since they laid into him just before the 1st test. He was giving deliberately difficult and angry answers IMHO.

Still I believe he was speaking the truth when talking about the captaincy not being natural to him, even if he was exaggerating the whole 'I want to quit asap' thing.

I think this is an important point....

Say what you will about Stanford, but a lot of WI players considered him a friend, and were scandalised at the way the English press relished writing negative articles about him. As a result, a lot of WI players don't trust the English press - with good reason!

Reading between the lines, it's obvious that the Guardian interview was a difficult one. I'm speaking here as a former newspaper journalist myself....

And it's also apparent that the Guardian journo was asking a lot of leading questions. I'm sure the interview didn't end on a good note, which would explain the slant given to it....

[shivfan]

Originally Posted by Goughy

I think there are a lot of factors in play here reflecting well and poorly on a number of people.

I dont like Gayle (granted Ive never met him). I dont like his attitude, I dislike his demeanor, I think he looks and acts like a clown and I almost find him offensive to look at.

That said, he is perfectly justified to like different things to me and to others. If Gayle prefers T20 to Test cricket then that is a personal choice. Obviously people are not all cut from the same cloth. Just because I dont like the mentality (or at least the mentality publicly presented) of Gayle doesnt mean he shouldnt be able to pursue what he like. Different personality types should be able to do what pleases them, rather than being shackled by the thoughts of others.

Though clearly, this isnt good news for the bigger picture of WI cricket.

With T20, things will come to a head soon. I think it is essential that we retain the right to criticize players for certain decisions (eg playing T20 over Tests) but never deny them their choices to do so.

Similarly, there are a lot of young fans in the Caribbean who share Gayle's view that 20/20 might be more important than Test cricket....

So, while I personally don't agree with him - being a fan of Test cricket - I think he's totally within his rights to say so. So, I support him where that statement is concerned. I don't place test cricket on this deified pedestal, where it must be worshipped at all costs, and heretics are burnt at the stake....

[Goughy]

Originally Posted by shivfan

Similarly, there are a lot of young fans in the Caribbean who share Gayle's view that 20/20 might be more important than Test cricket....

So, while I personally don't agree with him - being a fan of Test cricket - I think he's totally within his rights to say so. So, I support him where that statement is concerned. I don't place test cricket on this deified pedestal, where it must be worshipped at all costs, and heretics are burnt at the stake....

Yeah, as much as we may disagree with Gayle, all we can do is defend our position and allow him (and others) to choose their own path.

[Uppercut]

Originally Posted by zaremba

Yuck.

He doesn't deserve to captain the West Indies.

Haha, this is a strange comment. He doesn't want to! The whole interview was about how much he hates being the captain!

If anything, by your logic he does deserve to captain the West Indies as punishment for making such statements.




Hope he was havin' a laff though.

[Richard]

Originally Posted by shivfan

I don't see why we all need to worship at the alter of Test cricket, and treat it as if it's a deity that stands above us all to marvel at.

Because that's how those who view themselves as proper fans of the game view the situation as. We consider our POV to be the right one, and thus hope that it will be one that spreads as far and wide as possible.

People who consider themselves true fans of the game of cricket always put the Test match game at the top of the tree.

A different POV is of course something anyone is perfectly entitled to, but it's not something that will go down well with those of us who view ourselves as true fans of the game.

[Bonnie Prince C]

As a fan of cricket I really do not like to hear an international player say they wouldnt care if test cricket died off. I believe it is the true form of the game and the other forms are more fun and to make it accessable to more people. However, his personal opinion is his opinion and he has a right to it.

If he doesnt want to captain his country then what is the point in him doing it? The body language of the West Indian team in the last test was dreadful and if you have someone at the helm who doesnt even want to be there then it is not going to improve. If someone doesnt come in and lift the team from what they were like at Lords then the West Indies will struggle.

[garage flower]

Originally Posted by Goughy

I dont like Gayle (granted Ive never met him). I dont like his attitude, I dislike his demeanor, I think he looks and acts like a clown and I almost find him offensive to look at.

It's no good you sitting on the fence, Goughy.

I'm intrigued to find out what makes him (almost) offensive to look at.

[Goughy]

Originally Posted by garage flower

It's no good you sitting on the fence, Goughy.

I'm intrigued to find out what makes him (almost) offensive to look at.

Its purely an personal thing. Just the way he carries himself, the way he moves and his smile/sneer.

I just dont like looking at him. He isnt the only one. There are a few people that make me feel that way. I cant really explain it.

[shivfan]

I just saw a live interview with Gayle on Sky Sports, and as I suspected, his comments were twisted to suit the purpose of the Guardian journalist....

i'm glad I saw it live, because right now Sky are totally twisting what Gayle said in subsequent broadcasts! These English journalists are so dishonest.

gayle said very clearly that he has no plans to quit as captain any time in the near future. He said he was talking about sometime in the distant future. Didn't the producer at Sky here that?

as for Test vs 20/20, he's just saying that he prefers 20/20 cricket. He said test cricket will always be around, and will always be a serious test of one's abilities and mental strength. However, he said that it can drain you, and that when he eventually has to make a choice in the distant future, he will go for 20/20 cricket.

Gayle also pointed out that while the Durham test will be played in front of half-empty stands, a 20/20 will be sold out....

[Briony]

Originally Posted by shivfan

I just saw a live interview with Gayle on Sky Sports, and as I suspected, his comments were twisted to suit the purpose of the Guardian journalist....

i'm glad I saw it live, because right now Sky are totally twisting what Gayle said in subsequent broadcasts! These English journalists are so dishonest.

gayle said very clearly that he has no plans to quit as captain any time in the near future. He said he was talking about sometime in the distant future. Didn't the producer at Sky here that?

as for Test vs 20/20, he's just saying that he prefers 20/20 cricket. He said test cricket will always be around, and will always be a serious test of one's abilities and mental strength. However, he said that it can drain you, and that when he eventually has to make a choice in the distant future, he will go for 20/20 cricket.

Gayle also pointed out that while the Durham test will be played in front of half-empty stands, a 20/20 will be sold out....

An Ashes test would be a sellout. Maybe the crowds take their cue from a team's attitude.

Gayle's an arrogant, self-centred mercenary.

[shivfan]

Originally Posted by Briony

An Ashes test would be a sellout. Maybe the crowds take their cue from a team's attitude.

Gayle's an arrogant, self-centred mercenary.

Why? Because he said he personally prefers 20/20 cricket to test cricket?

Personally, I think he was right to give precedence to the IPL over this ridiculous, truncated tour. There's no way the idiots in the WICB should've allowed the ECB to give up the 2010 tour for this nonsensical one.

[Shri]

2030 A.D

Ashes Series - Australia Vs England in Australia

Fixtures

5 T20 games

3 50 over games

Tour length 20 days.

KP[England Coach] whinges about being away from his wife...again.