Gayle is Natasha's favourite cricketer.
You may call it a male thing but I go green with envy whenever Natasha praises any other cricketer. I'm a cricketer too, have been a part of two World Cup-winning sides, have played more than 50 Tests and been an IPL-winning captain. I'm aggressive on the field and a team-man to the core. Still, I'm not Natasha's favourite cricketer. That spot is taken by Chris Gayle.
The other day, when we were playing the RCB in Bangalore, I asked if she wanted Gayle to fire. She balanced it out. "I want Gayle to play well but KKR should win." Perhaps, God was half awake as He fulfilled only half of Natasha's wish.
Gayle has further raised the bar. After his innings of 175 not out against the Pune Warriors many more cricketers' wives are shuffling their favourite cricketers' list. Rain and thunderstorm in Kolkata meant our evening practice was aborted and we were huddled in the Eden Gardens' dressing room to watch Gaylestorm strike in Bangalore. Gayle was not walking into record books but creating a new volume of record books. Natasha was busy tweeting!
Another West Indian who was in the news the last two-three days was Sir Vivian Richards. I had the pleasure of Sir Viv's company during a flight from New Delhi to London. I remember asking him how he picked the right ball to hit. His reply was when he saw fear in the eyes of the bowler he knew it was his time. I tried it but it didn't happen. Damn!
Someone asked me at the press conference on Tuesday if the Knight Riders missed the services of Dr Rudi Webster, a sports psychologist once again from the West Indies. I said no. Dr Webster was with us last year and spoke at length to the boys. But why should we miss his services? Just because we lost the last two games. Sport doesn't work on knee-jerk reactions.
Kaizen Media Solutions. The writer is KKR skipper. Published by HT Syndication with permission from Hindustan Times. TAG:CYCSPL
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