Chris Gayle, the Universe boss, has slammed IPL for mistreatment but has also set a date for his return in the lucrative tournament.
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West Indies great Chris Gayle has been an asset in the shortest format of the game. His power-hitting ability and spin bowling makes him worth it. However, Chris Gayle, had not entered the IPL mega auction before the ongoing season after being a part of the lucrative tournament for years and featuring for teams like Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS). He was, however, not a permanent feature in the playing XI in the last two years and opted out of the cash-rich tournament in the middle of the season due in IPL 2022 citing bio-bubble fatigue as the core reason.
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The ‘Universe Boss’ has now opened up on his time at the lucrative tournament in the past two years and insisted that it was not a happening one. He slammed the IPL for mismanagement and not treating him well which led him to opting out of the draft ahead of the mega auction. “For the last couple of years, the way the IPL went about, I felt like I wasn’t treated properly,” Gayle was quoted as saying by The Mirror. “So I thought ‘okay, you (Gayle) didn’t get the respect you deserved after you did so much for the sport and IPL.’ So I said ‘okay, that’s it, I’m not going to bother to enter the draft,’ so I left it as it is. There is always going to be life after cricket so I’m just trying to adapt to normality,”
But Gayle, who made his last international appearance in the T20 World Cup 2021 against Australia in Abu Dhabi, is not done with the IPL. He has, in fact, set his sights on a possible IPL return and said that he would like to explore the opportunity to feature again in the upcoming season. “Next year I’m coming back, they need me!” the triple test centurion chuckled. “I’ve represented three teams in the IPL, Kolkata, RCB and Punjab. Between RCB and Punjab, I would love to get a title, with one of those two teams. I had a great stint with RCB where I was more successful within the IPL, and Punjab, they’ve been good. I love to explore and I love challenges so let’s see what happens.”
