Chris Gayle, the star West Indies cricketer, has expressed concerns about the current state and future of international cricket. He specifically raises issues regarding the dominance of the top three teams—India, Australia, and England—in all formats of the game.
Speaking to the PTI, the West Indies legend said he’s sceptical about the game’s growth in smaller nations, and if the situation doesn’t improve for good, fans will soon get tired of seeing the same teams dominate the game over and over again.
“Yeah that is what I am talking about, that is where I am coming from. Pretty much these three teams are dominating international cricket. If we continue like this people are going to say ‘hey we need a new team now taking over, new talents taking over and make a name for themselves’,” Gayle said to PTI
The Kingston-born said that bigger teams are getting paid more and playing more Test cricket which is leaving the smaller teams at a disadvantage.
“Over the years, cricket has changed quite a bit. It is a big business now. A lot of money is being thrown around not just in T20 leagues but in Test cricket as well. The bigger teams getting paid more than the smaller teams, leaving them at a disadvantage,” Gayle further added.
The 43-year-old further said that the cricket governing body should look into the salary disparity between the nations and that lower-ranked teams should be given more opportunities to play in order to help them improve their game.
“It needs to be structured, so that everyone can benefit. The disadvantaged and lower-ranked teams need to play more games to develop their skills. Infrastructure needs to be created for them and those players need to be paid well just like the big teams because everyone is playing the same amount of cricket,” the explosive southpaw concluded.
Gayle is renowned for his explosive performances in T20 cricket, but he has also made significant contributions in other formats. The carribean star batter accumulated over 19,000 runs while representing the West Indies in 103 Tests, 301 ODIs, and 79 T20Is. His batting prowess and destructive abilities have made him one of the most feared openers in international cricket.
Throughout his career, Gayle has been part of several successful West Indies teams. He played a crucial role in their triumphs in the 2004 Champions Trophy and the ICC T20 World Cups in 2012 and 2016. However, his last appearance for the national side was during the 2021 T20 World Cup, and he has been dropped from the team since then. It’s worth noting that Gayle has not officially announced his retirement from international cricket.
