With a total of 1,899 runs in T20Is and 4,965 runs in the Indian Premier League in his career, West Indies T20 legend Chris Gayle was one of the most feared batsmen in the shortest format of the game. Having the highest-ever individual score of 175 under his belt in the Indian Premier League, Gayle had always been in the spotlight in the IPL in his career.
The 45-year-old, who started his IPL career with Kolkata Knight Riders in 2009 and played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru from 2011 to 2017, was later picked up by the then Kings XI Punjab in the IPL auction in 2018 and ended his IPL career midway through the COVID-struck 2021 IPL season. The West Indies star has now spoken about his exit from the Punjab side (renamed Punjab Kings in 2021) and shared how he ‘felt like a depression mode’ after being ‘disrespected’ by the side.
“My IPL ended prematurely, you know, with Punjab, to be honest with you. Yeah, I mean absolutely, I mean I was disrespected in the franchise, Punjab Kings XI. You know, I felt like I wasn’t being treated properly for a senior guy who’s done so much for the league, you know, brought so much value to the franchise as well. And then you’re being disrespected and they treat you like a kid, you know, and then pretty much I’m just like… I felt like the building was on my shoulder. That’s the first time in my life I ever felt like a depression mode. So when people speak about depression, I can get a little sense of that and it wasn’t for me,” Gayle said in a podcast with Shubhankar Mishra.
The West Indies star had scored 3,420 runs for RCB in 91 matches in the IPL during his stint with the team from 2011 to 2017 before being picked up by PBKS in 2018. During his time with Kings, Gayle featured in 41 matches, scoring 1,339 runs at an average of 36 and a strike rate of 143. This also included his tally of 490 runs in the 2019 IPL. In the 2021 IPL, Gayle played in eight matches of the IPL in India before the season resumed in the UAE due to COVID-19. Gayle played only two matches during the UAE leg and left the IPL midway. At that time, Anil Kumble was the coach of the side with KL Rahul being the captain, and Gayle spoke about how he had a one-on-one discussion with Kumble.
Mental health important than money
“So I know we are talking about… it’s our job, working, but at that stage, money at that stage… nothing. You don’t need money right there; your mental health is more important than money. I called Anil (Anil Kumble). I had a one-on-one discussion and said, ‘Listen, I’m leaving because, at the same time, I had the World Cup, and we were in a bubble, so you couldn’t come out, so your mental space was just going, it was just really, really puzzling and destroying you.’ I was destroyed inside and after the last game I played against Mumbai I’m like, ‘Yo, it doesn’t make sense. I’m going to do myself more damage rather than be at peace,’” Gayle further said.
The West Indies star, who played his last T20I match during the T20 World Cup in 2021, also shared how he told Kumble that he was disappointed with him and the franchise.
“So I called him and had a one-on-one talk with him, you know, actually broke down as well, literally a breakdown when I was talking to him because I was really hurt. Oh yeah, I cried and I was disappointed with Anil and how the entire thing was actually run, the franchise was actually run at that time, and I said, ‘Listen man, thank you.’ KL Rahul was the captain; he called me and said, ‘Yo Chris, you know, you want to stay, you’ll play the next game.’ And I said, ‘Listen to me, man, I wish you guys all the very best.’ I just packed my bag and I walked out,” Gayle said.
