Gayle hits out at WICB

NEW WEST Indies one-day captain Chris Gayle has taken a swipe at the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) for its handling of recent issues.

In his latest diary, published on digicelcricket.com, Gayle hit out at the WICB for its handling of the players touring England and the one-day captaincy saga.

"First and foremost, I am very disappointed in the WICB for not having the guys here in England already and ready to play (the one-dayers). Some of our players from the Test series are carrying some niggles and we had to call up some West Indian players who are playing in the English leagues to come in as cover for the warm-up game," a disappointed Gayle wrote.

He said this was not good for the team.

"As the captain, I have to say that this is very, very dis-appointing and it is not a very good start at all.

"Things like these won't make us a better team. Once things like these happen, it won't make West Indies cricket move forward and won't make it better," he wrote.

Gayle, who has played 68 Tests and scored 4,479 runs with a top score of 317, also broke his silence on the board's initial decision to 'reject' him as captain of the 20/20 and one-day teams.

"I also have to mention that I was hurt and disappointed that after I was nominated as captain by the selectors, that I did not get the support of the board initially," he said.

"This led to the situation where I did not have a chance to have an input in selecting the team. However, I have accepted the job and I have tomove on with it; we must move forward together."

He further stated that the players were not the only ones to be blamed for West Indies' failures, as the board should shoulder some of the responsibility as well.

"The WICB is always talking about players needing to change but we, the players, need changes from the board as well," he wrote. "We can't be out in the wilderness all the time because we are the ones who are getting all the blame.

"These are some of the things that we as players have to go through. The WICB says they want the best out of players but we also need the best out of the WICB."

In closing, Gayle wrote: "I won't do too much more talking. I am a guy who is just looking for more action than talk right now because that is how I see it."