(Sportsmax) Former India opener Virender Sehwag has claimed Indian Premier League (IPL) Royal Challengers Bangalore’s decision to leave Windies star Chris Gayle off its retention list is completely understandable as the player is no longer the force he was.
RCB opted to retain India skipper Virat Kohli, South African batsman AB de Villiers and rookie Sarfaraz Khan. Gayle the T20 format’s record runs scorer was sent to the auction block along with the likes of Yuzvendra Chahal, KL Rahul and Kedar Jadhav.
The franchise could still use their Right to Match (RTM) clause to retain the player, but even then Sehwag has made it clear the option would be better used on leg spinner Chahal.
“Gayle is now getting old. He is not the same Gayle that he once was. Last year, he played in the IPL and his performance wasn’t at that level that he was once renowned for,” Sehwag said.
The 38-year-old star has struggled to impress in the last couple of seasons in the IPL where he played 19 matches in total and only managed to score 447 runs. Gayle did, however, show some of the once feared potential to be a devastating force after being omitted from last year’s Pakistan Super League (PSL). He rebounded with a strong performance in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) where he led Rangpur Riders past Dhaka Dynamites in the final. Gayle scored 146 runs from just 69 balls.
It is such performances that leaves the possibility of RCB using its RTM option to hold on to the player and Sehwag believes it’s could still happen.
“Teams take into account this factor (age) when they enter the auction. Maybe RCB might go after Gayle again at the auction,” he added.
