Former cricket administrator and IPL founder Lalit Modi has revealed the conversation he had with chris gayle Ahead of the West Indies batsman's debut season with Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2011.
Playing for Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL from 2009–10, Gayle's poor form in two seasons saw him go unsold in the 2011 auction. Modi revealed details of a phone call he had with the swashbuckling opener before the 2011 season.
“You know, there was a time in 2011; I remember very clearly, I came back to London after leaving the IPL, and my good friend, Chris Gayle, was not picked in the auction, and I got a call from him. Nobody picked me in the auction. I said, you didn't perform. IPL is all about performing. You played for Kolkata Knight Riders. My feeling is, you didn't perform, you can perform, but you are lazy about it. Went,” Lalit Modi recalled. Speaking to Michael Vaughan on the Overlap Cricket Podcast.
Gayle was selected by Royal Challengers Bangalore midway through the season as an injury replacement for Australian seamer Dirk Nannes. Modi revealed he approached Vijay Mallya and mentioned Gayle to the then RCB owner after Gayle told Modi about his frustration in signing teams due to mounting debts and lack of funds.
“He said, I really wanted it, I have a huge debt, and I think I need it to pay my bills. I made a few calls. Call 1, 2,3. Everybody said no. I crossed the street to Vijay Mallya's house. I said, Vijay, try this guy. He said, you know, I think Nathan's [Nannes] Got injured or something. natan [Nannes] was Injured. He said, I have an opening. But if he performs, I will pay him,” Modi said.
Gayle's debut was one of the most memorable debuts Royal Challengers BangaloreScored unbeaten 102 runs on 55 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders. He scored another brilliant 107 off 49 balls against Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) and won the Orange Cap, taking RCB to the final with 608 runs in 12 matches. In 2013, he broke the record for the fastest T20 century when he scored an unbeaten 175 off 66 balls against Pune Warriors, achieving the feat in just 30 balls.
“I told Chris, go out there, perform. He set world records. He wrote his checkbook. He wrote his own way. After that he never looked back. He got a multi-million dollar contract. He went out there and performed, and it was the hunger inside him that drove him to do it,” Modi concluded.
Despite not winning the trophy, Gayle has been one of the most prolific overseas batsmen in IPL history. He has scored 4965 runs in 142 matches, scored six centuries and won two Orange Caps.
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