Windies star Chris Gayle expressed his delight at being provided the opportunity to represent his nation for the fifth World Cup in a row.
The southpaw confessed that he had considered retirement a couple of years ago but the support of the fans drove him to play on.
“Honestly [I do it for] the fans, I am not going to lie. Maybe a couple of years ago the thought did cross [that I have had enough],” he said to Press Trust of India.
“Then the fans came out and said ‘don’t go’. They actually drive me to go on. I know nothing lasts forever and hopefully, I can give them a few more games and it also pushes you to win the World Cup.
Our #MondayMotivation..the #UniverseBoss gives us the scoop behind the celebration called "Living Warrior" 👀 #MenInMaroon #ItsOurGame #ChrisGayle #GayleForce pic.twitter.com/FsQ4Chb9BV
— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) April 22, 2019
“Never really considered thinking about it but time does fly quickly,” Gayle said.
“I could never dream of playing so many World Cups but it has happened. It shows consistency in the career.
“That keeps you going and earn a lot of praise. Hard work in the last couple of has years paid off. People want to see you more and you are trying to deliver as much as possible.
“We have seen changes [in the cricket board] in the last couple of months,” he said.
After several players were involved in the altercations with the board, things have steadied down in the past few months and Gayle is hopeful of a positive rebuilding phase.
“Hopefully, the new team gets it right, gets the structure in place. Cricket is the most important thing for the Caribbean. Hope they take the game to where it is supposed to be.
“It will take time, of course. Lot of things need to be rebuilt. On the field, we had a good series against England, now the World Cup is coming up and that is another opportunity for us to turn things around.”
