Windies skipper Jason Holder is confident star batsman Chris Gayle will be a part of the team for the 2019 World Cup once he is fit and ready.
The 39-year-old has expressed an interest in making a final appearance at the tournament, which will take place in England next year but it will be up to the Cricket West Indies panel of selectors to pick the player. The big left-hander has, however, made the criteria for selection after taking part in the regional Super50 competition for the Jamaica Scorpions.
The player recently opted out of taking part in the ongoing tour of India in order to compete in the Afghanistan Premier League (APL), leaving some to speculate on the possibility of his selection. Holder is, however, confident Gayle, who was a part of the team that took part in the World Cup qualifiers, will be part of the squad.
“He (Gayle) is definitely going to play the World Cup once his body holds up and he’s fit. We’d welcome him into the team. If you go back to the beginning of the year, Chris made himself available for the World Cup qualifiers. He only did that really because he wants to play the World Cup, he wants to play well for West Indies and he wants to do well,” Holder said.
“When he does that he has plenty of options around the world to make money it says something about the individual, says something about what he wants and I really admire that. He was obviously a pivotal part in us qualifying to the World Cup,” Holder said. (SportsMax)
