Chris Gayle is the most perfect blend of every single virtue that a cricketer can have, just exclude the fitness aspect. He is a titan and titans were always titanic and believed in creating a colossal impact instead of being fit and agile.
The impact that the self-christened ‘Universe Boss’ has crafted for himself is way too massive for any cricketer to overcome in ages to arrive. He is the pinnacle of success in T20 batting and the dominance that he brings along with himself is stuff from the folklore.
With all said and done and all the paeans being sung, there is another side to this T20 monster and that is something that precedes Chris Gayle’s reputation of being one of the most fearsome cricketers of the sport. That side of his is humour. For a bowler facing him, it is impossible to think that this Spartan can actually do something else than inflicting damage on them.
However, the entire world knows that the master of 14000 T20 runs is also one of the funniest characters on the pitch. In this story, we will celebrate the funnier side of Chris Gayle.
#1 Nobody warns like the Boss
Being a towering stature of the sport, it is very rare that he will let you walk away with your mistake, especially if you are a bowler. In an ongoing World Cup match in the 2012 T20 World Cup, West Indies was pitted against England. Gayle delivered a serious admonition to Eoin Morgan who walked away a proverbial mile from the popping crease at the non-striker’s end. Gayle started dancing and the umpire and Morgan himself laughed their hearts out but also got a severe warning from the Universe Boss.
#2 Chris Gayle got the recognition of Jonty Rhodes
Ideally, Gayle is not one of your acrobatic fielders flying like a soaring eagle on the pitch. He is a cumbersome big man, occasionally pulling off stunts that can take you by surprise. In another such funny incident, while fielding at mid-off against England, he pulled off a save with a diving effort that is extremely uncharacteristic of him. The audience roared with their ovation of this herculean yet modest effort from Chris Gayle in the field. The titan raised both his hands in acknowledgment of the support that he got from the crowd.
#3 The Chris Gayle marathon
West Indies was facing South Africa and while bowling to Graeme Smith, Chris Gayle continued his mile-long bowling run-up. Before he could have released the ball to Smith, the South African left the crease, pointing something at the sight-screen. This is when Gayle kept on continuing his bowling run-up to the middle of the crease, leaving everyone awestruck and Smith a broad smile on his face.
#4 The Michael Jackson moment for Gayle
In a clash with Afghanistan, Gayle affected a scalp as he claimed an important wicket with a brilliant delivery that foxed the batsman and the keeper flashed the bails. However, the moment of laughter arrived just after that as he started doing an iconic dance that split up the umpire and even the batter at the non-striker’s end. Post the match, he performed the dance separately alongside his Afghanistan counterparts.
#5 The catapult of his life
It is a rare spectacle that one performs a catapult at the most crucial junctures of his life. Chris Gayle had a surprise tumble over the Champions board of the World T20 champions. He made it look intentional and started catapulting left and right and performed the funniest dance steps you can ever witness in cricket.
ICC managed to create a video by compiling all the funniest moments of Gayle’s cricketing career. You will be able to see it here.
