Explosive West Indies opener Chris Gayle says his Test triple-century in Sri Lanka two years ago will spur him on in the World Twenty20.
The left-hander, who smashed a career-best 333 in the opening Test at Galle in 2010, said he was eagerly looking forward to the tournament starting in Sri Lanka next Tuesday.
“To get that triple-century was great for me. I have some happy memories here in Sri Lanka,” Gayle, 32, was quoted as saying in a West Indies Cricket Board press release on Thursday.
“I am hoping to use that as a booster to bigger and better things during the tournament. We know what we’re about. We know what we are here for.”
The West Indies are drawn with Australia and Ireland in Group B of the preliminary league, with the top two teams advancing to the Super Eights round.
They play their first game against Australia in Colombo on September 22.
The West Indies have not progressed through to the final in the previous three editions of the World T20, but Gayle said they had the players to deliver this time.
“When you look at our team you can say we are well balanced,” the opener said. “We want to get it together this time around. Once we stick to what we know, I don’t see any reason why we can’t go all the way.”
Gayle, the only West Indian to hammer a century in the World T20 when he hit 117 off 57 balls against South Africa in 2007, said his team needed to make a solid start.
“We have to adapt to the conditions as quickly as possible,” he said. “We want to make a solid start and look to put other teams under some pressure.
“There are a lot of competitive teams here. Every team has a chance to win and we have to be at our best at all times. The World T20 is ‘gonna’ be a cracker.”
