Gayle, slow over-rate SA’s worries against Windies

Times Media

TELFORD VICE, Sydney

HIS name is Christopher Henry Gayle and, if you give him the chance, he will hurt you. Zimbabwe know that only too well after Gayle took only the fifth double century in one-day history off them in Canberra on Tuesday.

SA need to avoid a similar fate when they play West Indies at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Friday in a match that carries important implications for their World Cup campaign.

Victory would put SA back where they were before their 130-run drubbing by India in Melbourne on Sunday - on course for a smooth landing in the quarter-finals. Defeat would cause the kind of turbulence that sets the seatbelt lights aglow and rattles tray tables.

Marlon Samuels scored a century of his own on Tuesday, but it is Gayle who looms largest on SA’s radar. The dreadlocked left-hander is among the few batsmen capable of rising above whatever circumstances his team are in and beating the opposition all on his own.

But, too often for his team’s own good, he does not. In fact, before Tuesday Gayle had gone 19 ODI innings without reaching three figures.

“It’s unfortunate that Zimbabwe decided to bowl Chris Gayle into some really good form,” Faf du Plessis said on Wednesday.

“On the day he gets in and scores runs he takes the match away from you. So it’s important to get him out early.”

That happened during West Indies’ ODI series in SA last moth, when Gayle could score only 71 runs in five innings.

“We bowled well against Chris Gayle,” Du Plessis said. “He didn’t score a lot of runs against us, so our plans worked.”

Gayle did not face more than 24 balls in any of those five innings. He was caught behind three times, and at deep midwicket - pulling - and cover - driving - once each. Four times out of five, he was dismissed by fast bowlers.

“Within the first few deliveries you bowl to him, you can get him out cheaply,” former SA captain Shaun Pollock said on Wednesday. “Once he gets going you have to make sure each bowler has a clear game plan.

“There is an obvious hitting zone: you can see which balls disappear. He loves to play the ball straight down the ground so you if you can take him out of that comfort zone - bowl in different areas and make him try and score in different areas - you can get him out.”

Pollock’s view dovetailed with the opinion of former West Indies fast bowler Ian Bishop of Gayle’s performance: “Everyone says he should go in and have a dash. I disagree. I think he is good enough to get himself in.

“But his footwork may be a little bit slower and it may take a little bit longer to get in - he’s 35 now. So, if you’ve got pace, you’ve got to run hard at him; you’ve got to be aggressive to him.”

SA’s other concern on Friday will be their over-rate. They were fined after Sunday’s game, and should they fall foul again captain AB de Villiers could be banned.

“Under no circumstances can AB de Villiers miss a World Cup game,” Du Plessis said. “That’s just non-negotiable. He’s too important for us.”

But Du Plessis accepted that SA needed to get through their overs faster: “We’re all to blame; it’s not just one guy. We’ve tried everything and we’re still slow.

“I wish there was an answer. If you get one, please share it with us.”