Chris Gayle is set to put more than a year in the international wilderness behind him when West Indies face England in the opening match of their one-day series at Southampton on Saturday.Gayle has an impressive one-day record, with over 8,000 runs in 228 ODIS including 19 hundreds at an average of nearly 40.
But it is the manner in which the Jamaican left-hander bats that has made him one of cricket's biggest box-office draws.
Indeed when it was confirmed Gayle had made his peace with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), ticket sales for Saturday's match quickened to the extent of ensuring a near-capacity 14,000 crowd.
At his best, the 32-year-old opener and former West Indies captain is a ferocious, if essentially orthodox, hitter who is capable of driving the world's fastest bowlers straight back over their heads for six.
A strike-rate of 83.95 is testament to Gayle's attacking approach, yet until Wednesday's warm-up match against Middlesex at Lord's he hadn't played for the West Indies for some 15 months since their World Cup quarter-final defeat by Pakistan in Dhaka.
Criticisms of coach Ottis Gibson and senior Caribbean cricket officials led to Gayle's exile by the WICB.However, a meeting earlier this month between the WICB, selectors and Gayle, brokered by Ralph Gonsalves, the Prime Minister of St Vincent, and Baldwin Spencer, the Prime Minister of Antigua, saw him restored to the squad.
But it is the manner in which the Jamaican left-hander bats that has made him one of cricket's biggest box-office draws.
Indeed when it was confirmed Gayle had made his peace with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), ticket sales for Saturday's match quickened to the extent of ensuring a near-capacity 14,000 crowd.
At his best, the 32-year-old opener and former West Indies captain is a ferocious, if essentially orthodox, hitter who is capable of driving the world's fastest bowlers straight back over their heads for six.
A strike-rate of 83.95 is testament to Gayle's attacking approach, yet until Wednesday's warm-up match against Middlesex at Lord's he hadn't played for the West Indies for some 15 months since their World Cup quarter-final defeat by Pakistan in Dhaka.
Criticisms of coach Ottis Gibson and senior Caribbean cricket officials led to Gayle's exile by the WICB.However, a meeting earlier this month between the WICB, selectors and Gayle, brokered by Ralph Gonsalves, the Prime Minister of St Vincent, and Baldwin Spencer, the Prime Minister of Antigua, saw him restored to the squad.
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