BRIDGETOWN (Barbados): Estranged West Indies batsman Chris Gayle has not ruled out making himself available for the third Test of the West Indies’ ill-fated tour of England but says a meeting with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) slated for Sunday will take priority.
The former Windies captain will sit down with WICB officials, Antigua’s Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer and St. Vincent Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves in St. Vincent to discuss “residual matters”, relating to the solution that was brokered last month which paved the way for the Jamaican’s return to the team.
At the same time, speculation has been rife that Gayle could fly out to join the struggling side that has lost both Tests of the series and is currently in disarray, especially with a novice top order.
“I don’t know if I’ll eventually get that call (from the selectors) but I have to meet with the board first on the third (of June) and the Test match starts on the seventh, so I don’t how that would work,” Gayle said on the SportsMax Zone, Tuesday.
“We would have to meet and then (I would have to) jump on a plane. I don’t know how beneficial that would be for the team to actually be arriving a day before the Test match.”
He added: “But as I said, I am a sportsman and I am always ready physically and mentally for the occasion.”
Gayle had indicated his unavailability for the Test phase of the England tour, preferring to play the full Indian Premier League (IPL) for Royal Challengers Bangalore.
However, his IPL campaign ended early after Royal Challengers failed to reach the playoffs, and it sparked fresh discussion over his involvement in the ongoing Test series.
Gayle, who has not played a Test in 18 months because of his protracted squabble with the WICB, said since the IPL began he had been keeping himself fit.
“You’ve got to prepare. You never know what will happen. You have to be prepared for the unexpected at times,” the 32-year-old Jamaican said. (IANS)