After bruising the Australians with his patented brand of power-hitting, Chris Gayle was all smiles and one-liners at the post-match interaction.
Excerpts:
Those dancing shoes
I saw the video (Gangnam) a couple of months ago and it (the dance steps) just happened. It is a good dance and everyone can enjoy it.
About his knock
It was a slow start and I didn’t get much of the strike, but the good thing was I didn’t panic, wasn’t frustrated and then (Marlon) Samuels hit those fours and we were going at a good rate. The partnerships with Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard also helped us a lot. You can build an innings in Twenty20 as long as the dot balls don’t get too much.
The contest
I knew the spinners would play a part and thought 150, 160 would be a good score. In the end, those 40 extra runs were a bonus. I don’t think Australia surrendered. In fact, (Shane) Watson was the pick of the bowlers and even (Pat) Cummins had some variations. It’s just that when you bowl to power-hitters, you have to get your yorkers right.
Warner-Samuels spat
I guess they (Australians) must have said something to Marlon when he was batting and so when he got the chance he gave back. When you get, you got to give back. In the end, we all shook hands and everything is fine.
The final
We are here to rock the final. Sri Lanka has world-class players but we are confident and I believe that we can win the cup. It is going to be a thriller.
Solid support
George Bailey praised Gayle’s knock and also pointed out that the supporting roles played by Samuels, Bravo and Pollard took the semifinal away from Australia.
“We could never build pressure on Gayle because at the other end, Samuels, Bravo and Pollard kept the scoreboard moving. I persisted with the main bowlers initially because against a player like Gayle, you need to get his wicket fast,” the Australian skipper said.
