Royal Challengers Bangalore would look forward to Chris Gayle to provide them the explosive thrust which he normally reserves for dealing with the West Indies board when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders
Royal Challengers Bangalore would look forward to Chris Gayle to provide them the explosive thrust which he normally reserves for dealing with the West Indies board when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens today.
Bangalore couldn't have signed up the former West Indies captain ufffd as a replacement for the injured Dirk Nannes ufffd at a better time.
Gayle is in a fiery mood after the West Indies Cricket Board criticised him for opting to play in the IPL instead of making himself available for the home series against Pakistan.
If that's not enough, the sight of his former franchise and the revamped Eden Gardens should motivate him to go ballistic.
And KKR would only be too aware of the danger posed by Gayle's ability to whack the ball out of the park. "We are not thinking of any special strategy for Gayle. He is an opponent player and we are looking at him as one," KKR coach Dav Whatmore said on the eve of the clash.
"We know our opponents, but we play according to our merits," he added.
Bangalore are languishing at second place from bottom in the points table with just one win from five matches, and Gayle's arrival would give them the much-needed morale boost.
"We are ready to face KKR's strong batting line up. We know our strength. We are trying to play to our potential," Bangalore's pace spearhead Zaheer Khan said.
Gayle had a long batting session at the nets yesterday, an indication that he could play his first match of the season against KKR.