St. John’s: Curtly Ambrose, the last of the legendary West Indies fast bowlers, feels problems between destructive batsman Chris Gayle and the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) should be sorted out immediately for the benefit of Caribbean cricket.
Strumming his base guitar at a casino in the capital city along with his former captain Richie Richardson, Ambrose prefers to stay away from cricket.
The poor state of West Indies cricket pains him and he doesn’t know why Gayle, who was the best batsmen of the Indian Premier League (IPL), is not in the squad.
But he knows that Gayle is the only cricketer who can make an impact for the West Indies. WICB selectors have kept out Gayle after he criticised the board in a radio interview.
“Gayle is one of the premium batsmen in the Caribbean. He would definitely make a difference in this West Indies batting line up. However why he is not playing I am not sure. I have heard there are some problems between him and the WICB. I don’t know the details and I don’t want to elaborate on that. But they need to sit down and sort out the matter because Gayle will make a difference in this team,” said Ambrose, who struck a musical chord with Richardson by forming a band Spirited.
The band lit up the atmosphere as they churn out reggae and calypso music and the crowd swayed to their music.
The towering Ambrose, who always turned down interview request saying “Curtly talk to no maan” is now a gentle giant.
The 47-year-old cricketer fondly remembered the unplayable bowling attack that he formed with his fellow legend Courtney Walsh. Ambrose said their pair was one of the best to have played the game.
“Not long ago we had 4-5 fast bowlers. That was more than a pair but my pairing with Courtney has been probably the best pair in the history of West Indies. It was one of the best pair to have played this game,” he said.
Ambrose said his success on the pitch was due to his aggressive nature.
“Fast bowlers should be aggressive. I have been one of those fast bowlers who thrived on aggression. It is a part of my game,” he said. (IANS)