Caribbean Premier League (CPL) franchise St Lucia Zouks has given the masterstroke by adding arguably the greatest T20 batsman – Chris Gayle to their squad for the upcoming season. Amid the lockdown due to coronavirus pandemic, the Zouks management is on a roll. After putting Darren Sammy at the helm of things, they have now acquired the service of Gayle.
The destructive opening batsman – Gayle is a synonym to T20 batting. When on song, the southpaw can tear apart any bowling unit on a giving. His rich statistics are also a testimony to the brand value he is. Chris Gayle is the leading T20 run-scorer of all time as well as the man with the most centuries in the format. He also has the most successful batsman in CPL, having made 2,344 runs at the tournament.
Gayle to don Zouks jersey for CPL 2020
Meanwhile, this will be Gayle’s third CPL franchise; having represented Jamaica Tallawahs and St Kitts & Nevis Patriots earlier. Moreover, he has won the CPL title twice with the Tallawahs and played in the final with the Patriots in 2017.
St Lucia Zouks skipper Darren Sammy seemed extremely happy to have Chris Gayle on his side. The veteran all-rounder also believes that having Gayle in the ranks will be a learning curve for the youngsters in the team. The flamboyant Caribbean batsman will have a point to prove in CPL which Sammy is keen to utilise.
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“Chris is one of the most successful T20 batsmen in the world and with his experience with our young openers, a lot can be learnt from Chris. I will have a motivated Chris Gayle looking to prove a point that he is one of the leading T20 batsmen in the world. I can’t wait for CPL 2020 and hopefully, the coronavirus will be under control and we can have an exciting T20 tournament,” Sammy said.
Furthermore, St Lucia Zouks head coach Andy Flower also seemed excited to have Chris Gayle in the team. CPL 2020 is slated to take place between August 19 and September 26, but the tournament organisers are currently watching the current situation with COVID-19 outbreak and will take a call shortly.