Chris Gayle's England affair

Universe Boss, Chris Gayle, turned 38 yesterday. Having made his ODI debut against India in Toronto in 1999, he completed 18 years in international cricket earlier this month.

From representing West Indies for years across formats to becoming the best T20 batsman around the globe, he has come a long way in his career.

Gayle, who has been recalled to the West Indies ODI side for the ongoing series in England, has added a whole new zeal to the team. His presence at the top of the order does not only aid his team, but also develops a fear in the minds of the opposition as well. Such is the aura of the big man!

He displayed signs of brilliance with the bat in the one-off T20I and the first ODI before injuring himself in the second ODI at Trent Bridge. There have been reports that he is likely to undergo a scan on his right hamstring. Persistent rains in Nottingham resulted in the abandonment of the second ODI and West Indies' team management would be hoping to have the big man back for the third ODI, at Bristol.

Over the course of his international career, he has played seven ODI series in England, with the current one being his eighth.

Out of the 270 ODIs that Gayle has played, 27 have come against England. He has scored 1,036 runs against the English at an average of 43.16 and a strike rate of 84.29, including two centuries and five half-centuries. He has played 14 of these 27 matches in England, scoring 557 runs at an average of 50.63 and a toned down strike rate of 74.96.

Overall, in England, he has scored 880 runs in 27 matches at an average of 38.26 and a further toned down strike rate of 72.30. Here is a detailed description of how Gayle has performed in ODIs in England:

NatWest Series 2000

A triangular ODI series in England was a tradition in earlier times. Zimbabwe were the third nation which took part in the tournament in 2000. Having won a solitary match during the league stage, West Indies failed to qualify for the finals. Gayle played all of the six matches, scoring 113 runs at a meagre average and strike rate of 22.60 and 48.49 respectively.

He opened the innings in three matches alongside Sherwin Campbell. In the first match, he scored 41(86) with the help of six fours. The next match against England was washed out due to rain. Gayle scored 6 and 37 in the matches that he opened while in the two matches that he batted at No. 5, he scored 26 and 3 respectively.

NatWest Series 2004

Gayle in action

The next time Gayle visited England was in 2004 for another triangular series, this time involving New Zealand. West Indies and New Zealand reached the final of the series, which the latter won by 107 runs. Gayle ended up being the highest run-scorer in the series. He scored 276 runs in seven matches at an average of 69 and a strike rate of 68.31.

Gayle also scored his maiden ODI century in that series, an unbeaten 132*(165), with the help of 12 fours and a six against England at Lord's. Till date, it remains his sole ODI century in England.

Something that stands out as far as the numbers are concerned is his strike rate. The numbers throw light on how Gayle rediscovered himself post the advent of T20 cricket.

ICC Champions Trophy 2004

Chris Gayle failed to fire in the tournament

During the ICC Champions Trophy in 2004, West Indies went on to win the title after defeating host nation, England, by 2 wickets at Kennington Oval, London. The tournament took place soon after the culmination of West Indies' tour of England. In the four matches that West Indies played in the tournament, Gayle scored 139 runs at an average of 34.75 and a strike rate of 72.39, with a best of 99 during West Indies' first match against Bangladesh at Southampton.

In the matches that followed, Gayle scored 16, 1 and 23 against South Africa, Pakistan and England respectively. In the match against South Africa, Gayle was the pick of the West Indian bowlers, registering figures of 10-0-50-3. He was also the joint third-highest (with Michael Kasprowicz) wicket-taker in the tournament. He picked up seven wickets at an average of 17.85, an economy rate of 4.9 and a strike rate of 21.8.

NatWest Series 2007

Gayle celebrates with his teammates after clinching the trophy

Having lost the first ODI by 79 runs at Lord's, West Indies came back from behind to win the three-match ODI series 2-1. Gayle was the third-highest run-scorer in the series, ending with 124 runs in three matches at an average of 41.33 and a strike rate of 68.88.

Having scored six runs, he was the first West Indian to fall at Lord's as he hit an almost wide Liam Plunkett delivery to Stuart Broad at deep square leg. In the following match, at Edgbaston, he scored 36 (40) with the help of a couple of fours and three sixes. His vigil at Trent Bridge was once again put to a halt by Plunkett, this time on 82 (126).

NatWest Series 2009

Gayle struggled for form although he did manage to score at a strike rate greater than 100

West Indies toured England for a short tour comprising two Test matches, three ODIs and a T20I before the ICC World Twenty20 in 2009. After the first ODI at Leeds resulted in a washout, England won both the remaining ODIs, at Bristol and Birmingham, by 6 wickets and 58 runs respectively.

In the second ODI at Bristol, Gayle scored 31 (28), with the help of three fours and two sixes, before being knocked down by Graeme Swann. He failed to lead from the front as he scored 42 runs in two matches at an average of 21 and a strike rate of 110.52, the first time that he scored runs at a strike rate above 100 in a series in England.

NatWest Series 2012

Gayle amassed a fifty but it wasn't enough to halt the England juggernaut

Three years down the line, West Indies travelled to England for a tour which looked almost like the one they had played in 2009, i.e., three Test matches, three ODIs and a one-off T20I. In the first ODI at The Rose Bowl, on the back of Ian Bell and Tim Bresnan's efforts, England defeated West Indies by 114 runs (D/L Method). Gayle missed the match due to a stress injury in his foot.

The southpaw played a solitary ODI, the second one, at Kennington Oval. He scored 53 (51) with the help of three fours and five sixes, at a strike rate of 103.92, before being found wanting in front of the stumps, to a Graeme Swann delivery.

The final ODI at Leeds was abandoned without a ball being bowled. Having won the second ODI by 8 wickets, England won the series 2-0.

ICC Champions Trophy 2014

Gayle struggled to convert his starts into substantial scores

Despite winning their inaugural match of the tournament against Pakistan by 2 wickets at the Kennington Oval, West Indies failed to qualify for the knockout stages. In the three matches that he played, Gayle scored 96 runs at an average of 32 and a strike rate of 104.34.

Chasing 171 runs to win against Pakistan, West Indies lost Johnson Charles and Darren Bravo in the third and the fifth over respectively. Gayle was the third West Indian batsman to walk back to the pavilion. He ended up scoring 39 (47) with the help of four fours and a six. In a small run-chase and against a fierce Pakistani bowling attack, his innings was, perhaps, the need of the hour for the West Indian team.

In the second match, against India at Kennington Oval, Gayle kick-started the innings in his typical fashion. He hit four fours to race to 21 off 17 balls before edging a Bhuvneshwar Kumar delivery to Ravichandran Ashwin at first slip.

In West Indies' final league match against South Africa, Gayle scored an impressive 36 (27) with the help of five fours and a six. Had he converted his start to at least a half-century, West Indies might have ended up winning the tied encounter.