"Gayle is in Pakistan" - Fans left disappointed as Chris Gayle misses out from the playing XI on his birthday 

Punjab Kings left out birthday boy Chris Gayle from their match against Rajasthan Royals today. At the toss, PBKS skipper KL Rahul informed that Gayle was not match-fit for this contest. Still, the Jamaican star's fans were left extremely disappointed to see their favorite player miss out from action on his birthday.

Punjab Kings handed debuts to South African batsman Aiden Markram and England leg-spinner Adil Rashid. Rajasthan Royals gave big-hitting West Indies opener Ewin Lewis his debut cap. KL Rahul won the toss and chose to field first on a decent-looking track.

Here are the playing XI's for the 32nd IPL 2021 match.

Rajasthan Royals Playing XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Evin Lewis, Sanju Samson(w/c), Liam Livingstone, Mahipal Lomror, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahman, Chetan Sakariya, Kartik Tyagi

Punjab Kings Playing XI: KL Rahul(w/c), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Fabian Allen, Adil Rashid, Harpreet Brar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Porel

Also Check: IPL Live Score | IPL Points Table | IPL Schedule

Fans were sad not to see "Universe boss" Chris Gayle on the field on his birthday. They took to Twitter to express their disappointment through memes and one-liners targeted towards KL Rahul and Punjab Kings team management. Some of them donned their creative hats and funnily speculated why Gayle had to miss this match.

Here are some of the best reactions:

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I will be disappointed if I am not out there in the middle: Chris Gayle before the start of the match against RR

Chris Gayle spoke before the match and gave his views about the current state of Punjab Kings in the league. He spoke about how they are going to approach the upcoming games. Gayle also revealed that he would be disappointed to miss the game if not picked today. In this regard, Chris Gayle said:

"It is a new start for us, but we want to hit the ground running right away. Some must-win games for coming up for us. We have to go hard and be fearless from now on. Big shout out to the fans, thanks for the birthday wishes, much appreciated. I am happy to be here. 42 and still going strong.

If given a chance, I'd love to give you guys something out there. If I am not, that's how it is. I will be disappointed if I am not out there in the middle."

Both teams are currently in the bottom half of the points table. They will be desperate to win this contest and make a positive start in the second half.