Chris Gayle's Big Bash future still under rough waters
It could be said that controversies follow Chris Gayle where ever he goes. After some indications that the burly West Indies batsman might feature in the 2016-17 Big Bash League (BBL), the door still seems to be shut on him.
ESPNCricinfo reported that the ramifications of the furor he had created during the previous edition of the BBL stands as a stumbling block in Gayle’s possible return to Australia’s premier Twenty20 league.
While turning out for the Melbourne Renegades, the left-hander had publicly flirted with a female reporter during an interview on the sidelines. Gayle invited Mel McLaughlin for a drink with a tacky catchphrase ‘Don’t blush Baby’ which has now become quite infamous.
After a persistently firm stance on the Jamaican’s misdemeanor, Cricket Australia (CA) CEO James Sutherland had offered a rather mellow response to the Gayle conundrum. He affirmed, “No matter what anyone at Cricket Australia thought at management level, board level, I think you're on a slippery slope if you start making judgments on players who could or shouldn't be playing in the Big Bash League or in our domestic competitions.”
Adding that the option to select him was left to the clubs themselves, Sutherland asserted, “My view is unless there's a very, very strong reason along the lines of anti-corruption, then it's difficult for us to be making those judgments. I'm not saying that it wouldn't happen, but my judgment is that it's not appropriate, it's about the teams themselves to make the calls.”
However, it is understood that the BBL franchises might still be reluctant to have him on board. And even if they were to draft the powerful hitter, CA could have the final say in the issue. BBL Head Anthony Everard revealed that the national board contains the right to annul the selection of overseas cricketers.
In the aftermath of the incident, Sutherland had minced no words in condemning Gayle’s behavior. He quipped, “Those comments are completely out of line and inappropriate and something that we don't in any way condone, and there's no place in cricket or the Big Bash League for those sorts of comments.”
Labeling the case as ‘workplace harassment’, Sutherland blasted, “It's not a nightclub, and one of the things that hasn't dawned on everyone is it's actually a workplace. It's Chris Gayle's workplace, it's also Mel McLaughlin's workplace and those sorts of comments border on harassment and are completely inappropriate in cricket, inappropriate in a workplace.”
It will be interesting to see whether the dangerous Gayle might find himself on the field during the next edition of the BBL. For now, the 36-year old who recently became a father to a baby girl (whom he ironically named ‘Blush’) is busy representing the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL.