Gayle hopes T20 triumph inspires Windies Test form

KANDY, SRI LANKA – OCTOBER 01: Chris Gayle of West Indies hits out for six during the superover of the ICC World Twenty20 2012 Super Eights Group 1 match between the West Indies and New Zealand at Pallekele Cricket Stadium on October 1, 2012 in Kandy, Sri Lanka.

Dhaka, Nov 11 – Talismanic West Indies opener Chris Gayle hopes the regional side can use their World Twenty20 success to inspire their form in the game’s longest form.

West Indies face Bangladesh in a two-Test series starting Tuesday in Mirpur and Gayle says the confidence from their triumph in Sri Lanka last month could go a long way in a revival of their Test fortunes, reports CMC.

“It felt good to be part of a World champion team and to achieve that particular milestone,” Gayle told reporters here Saturday.

“It is something that I can look back in the future and say I was a part of it. Hopefully, we can build on that success and do better in the longer format of the game.

“This has been our major challenge in the last few years. Hopefully, we can get things kick-started and make sure we do better in this Test series and the longer format of the game.”

Gayle missed the Windies trip to Bangladesh last year when the Caribbean side won the two-Test series 1-0, before taking the three-match one-day series 2-1. They went down in the one-off Twenty20 International.

Since then, West Indies have been strengthened by Gayle’s return and the inclusion of star off-spinner Sunil Narine, along with the impressive form of Marlon Samuels and veteran left-hander Shiv Chanderpaul.

The Windies will carry the favourite tags heading into the series but Gayle said they would not be taking Bangladesh for granted.

“The players are just trying to fine-tune things now. We’ve had a camp and I’ve been hitting the ball pretty well, so we just want to get back into the middle and get back into the groove as quickly as possible,” Gayle noted.

“We are not going to take them lightly. They have got a lot of key players and they have a captain who leads from the front, so we are going to play like they were any other opponent.”

–IANS/CMC

sr/dg