Wellington:
Still unsure about Chris Gayle’s fitness, the West Indies will have to overcome their erratic play to have any chance against underdogs-turned-favourites New Zealand in the fourth quarterfinal of the ICC Cricket World Cup here tomorrow.
Both teams have taken contrasting routes to reach the last eight stage with New Zealand winning all their six pool games and West Indies scraping through as the fourth placed team from Group B.
An unpredictable West Indies need Gayle for the crucial knock-out game even as captain Jason Holder said a final call on the dangerous opener will be taken not before match day morning.
“He has an injection and a scan. The scan didn’t show anything major, so we’ll just see how he pulls up today and make a decision tomorrow morning,” the skipper said.
Gayle, however, trained for the first time this week this morning after receiving an injection in his lower back.
Though dispelling the notion that West Indies were overtly dependant on Gayle, Holder said any team would love to have the left-hander on board.
“Well, obviously Chris’s stats speak for themselves. He is one of the most feared batsmen in world cricket. So to have Chris on the squad is a plus for anybody. So to have him there, just his presence, is something.
“Having said that, we won the last game without him, so I can’t say we can’t win without him, you know? Obviously he has been a very good player for us over the years. But it has been shown that we have got people to fit the bill. We have got Johnson Charles who came in the last game and he got a half-century and looked the part,” said Holder.
The captain himself has been a key player for the West Indies, performing both with the bat and ball in the side’s three wins and as many losses in the group stage.
