IPL 2020: Sourav Ganguly in awe of Chris Gayle – We think he just chills around but sitting out pinched him

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly lauded KXIP batsman Chris Gayle’s performance in the IPL 2020 and said that people think that he just keeps laughing and roaming around but being benched for long pinched him.

Chris Gayle got his first game of the IPL 2020 after his team lost 6 out their starting 7 matches. The towering West Indian waited and waited for his chance until he got one against his former team Royal Challengers Bangalore. The 41-year-old grabbed the opportunity with both his hands and fired a match-winning 45-ball 53 in the match. His innings included 5 gigantic sixes as Punjab decimated RCB by 8 wickets. In the following 2 matches Gayle quick-fire 24 and 29 off 21 and 13 balls, respectively. Not to forget it was Chris Gayle’s six on the first ball of second Super Over of the match against Mumbai Indians which made the 12-run eliminator target achievable.

Chris Gayle before getting the chance, was also hospitalised due to food poisoning. Also, he sent out many cryptic messages saying the ‘Universe Boss’ will not go down without fighting. The Carribean legend is usually known for his jolly nature and his lavish lifestyle is always on display on his social media handles. ‘#LivingDiLife’ is the usual hashtag which is used in his peppy captions. Considering these facts, watching Gayle’s message from his hospital bed or through his posts was surely a sign of him being ‘hurt’ for being benched for too long.

Now, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has also said that being made to sit out ‘pinched’ Chris Gayle and that was one of the reasons for his solid arrival in the ongoing IPL 2020 in UAE.

“We all think Chris Gayle keeps laughing and roaming but it pinched him that he has been made to sit out. These are the things to see and learn from. IPL is just too much competition,” Sourav Ganguly said while talking to Star Sports.

Sourav Ganguly said the IPL has got ‘everything’ in it and choosing a single performance was a difficult task. The 47-year-old, who himself was in UAE to oversee the preparations for the 13th edition of the league, said that he was in awe of the batting performances of KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Agarwal. The former India captain also took note of the bowling prowess of Delhi Capital pacers Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje. Mumbai Indians star Jasprit Bumrah and Kings XI Punjab’s bowling mainstay Mohammad Shami has also succeeded in impressing the ‘Prince of Kolkata’.

“I think the entire tournament is wow. I can’t pick one moment from it. KL Rahul’s batting, Shikhar Dhawan’s batting, some of the fielding, Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling, the way Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada have bowled, the way Mohammad Shami has bowled. Mayank Agarwal’s batting in this format.”