Windies froze me out, says emotional Gayle
Chris Gayle claimed Wednesday he had been frozen out by the West
Indies Cricket Board and was left with no option but to choose the
money-spinning IPL over national team duty.
The former captain said he was forced to accept an offer to play for
the Royal Challengers Bangalore because he was not sure about his place
in the West Indies team, following his axing for the opening matches of
Pakistan's tour.
West Indies officials reacted angrily to Gayle's decision, and said
they were less than pleased with the manner in which the he handled the
situation.
They begrudgingly gave him a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to
participate in the IPL.
But a few hours later Gayle blasted the WICB in a revealing radio
interview from India.
He said after getting injured during the World Cup, he paid all
expenses for medical treatment in Britain before returning home to
Jamaica, where he took it upon himself to commence a rehabilitation
programme with his personal trainer.
"A group of players were selected for a training camp in Barbados,
and I never got a call, nobody spoke to me, and I decided to leave it
alone," an emotional Gayle said in an hour-long interview on Jamaican
radio station, KLAS Sports.
"I continued my training programme, and I came to find out via the
media that a Twenty20 squad was announced, and a One-day International
squad was announced, and I was stunned when I saw a big headline in the
newspapers, 'Gayle, Sarwan, Chanderpaul dropped'."
Gayle said he was puzzled because no WICB official had actually
called to check-up on him.
He felt the least they could have done was to call him to the
training camp at the West Indies High Performance Centre in Bridgetown,
and assess his fitness before making a decision about the team.
"The only communication I have had with anyone connected with the
WICB was when I sent a text message to (team physio) C.J. Clark, and
gave him an update about how I was doing," he said.
"I told him I was feeling good, the progress I was making, I was
running, I was in the gym, and working. His only response was that he
would send a fitness programme, which I did not receive until the IPL
offer had presented itself."
He continued: "I wanted to get back on track as quickly as possible.
I wanted to play and represent West Indies.
"This was my ultimate goal, since I did not have a contract, but I
was forced into this decision because teams were picked, I was not
informed about what was happening, and I did not know what the future
would hold. AFP |