 "Chris Gayle has a 'very big bat'")
Among several Caribbean folklore characters, Anansi the spider is easily the most fascinating. Anansi is a trickster figure that first originated out of west African folk culture. As a trickster, Anansi often outwits his opponents, but while you admire his wisdom, he can be wicked and cruel - his tactless demeanour means he runs himself into a lot of trouble. In Jamaica, Anansi tales travel far and wide.
Christopher Henry Gayle is an abject listener and a reckless talker, but even he would have listened to some of these tales fixedly. Just that he took them a bit too seriously. When he grew up, Gayle decided to be just like Anansi - seeing his hard-earned admiration get undone by impetuous churlishness.
After failing to coax Australian presenter Mel McLaughlin into having a drink with him, on live television, Gayle, earlier this month, decided to reveal the size of his "bat" to Charlotte Edwards, a journalist with The Times in England. "I have a very, very big bat. The biggest in the world. You think you can lift it? You'd need two hands," said the burly Jamaican. After the boorish contents of the conversation were made public, Gayle played the racism card, stating that "black men were easy targets".
His peers would tell you that Gayle is one of the most easy-going guys around; he likes to have a bit of fun. Last year, Gayle took to Instagram to show off the the latest addition to his house: an indoor strip club. Even as most scoffed at this outlandish addition, the 36-year-old remained defiant, reiterating that "you're not a real cricketer if you don't have a strip club at home".
But never did one imagine that this languidness would snowball into such crassness. To think that their marquee player has a strip club at home is a scandalous thought that the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) would not even like to entertain. What they will more openly talk about is his wretched form.
In nine matches this Indian Premier League season, Gayle has scored a paltry 151 runs at an average of 16.77. A couple of seasons ago, he bludgeoned the opposition for 175 in a single game. And, he has seldom got going in crunch games, allowing skipper Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers to take charge. Kohli won't be banking on him too much in Sunday's final either.
For all his exceptional talent, Gayle, as Andrew Flintoff likes to call it, has often in the past come across as an absolute "chop" - an old English slang for idiot. While fans love him for his batting, the cricket world would genuinely appreciate it if Gayle would assuage his persona with a dose of decorum.
According to another Jamaican legend, people roaming the countryside at night must be wary of a beastly, calf-like creature that violently chases down people. Surely, Gayle doesn't want to become that too.
Christopher Henry Gayle is an abject listener and a reckless talker, but even he would have listened to some of these tales fixedly. Just that he took them a bit too seriously. When he grew up, Gayle decided to be just like Anansi - seeing his hard-earned admiration get undone by impetuous churlishness.
After failing to coax Australian presenter Mel McLaughlin into having a drink with him, on live television, Gayle, earlier this month, decided to reveal the size of his "bat" to Charlotte Edwards, a journalist with The Times in England. "I have a very, very big bat. The biggest in the world. You think you can lift it? You'd need two hands," said the burly Jamaican. After the boorish contents of the conversation were made public, Gayle played the racism card, stating that "black men were easy targets".
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During the interview with McLaughlin in January, Gayle even asked the Seven Network journalist not to "blush". The former West Indies captain had to dish out a $10,000 fine for the uncomfortable exchange. But it did not stop there. Just the following month, Gayle added another member to his "blush" victim list. This time the inglorious honour fell to a man: former Australian all-rounder Tom Moody. "Cheers, Tom. Don't blush, Tom," said Gayle, after stuttering to a golden duck in a Pakistan Super League match in Sharjah. His "blush" obsession did not stop there. When his wife gave birth to a girl earlier this month, Gayle decided to bestow his favourite sobriquet upon his daughter, naming her Blush.
His peers would tell you that Gayle is one of the most easy-going guys around; he likes to have a bit of fun. Last year, Gayle took to Instagram to show off the the latest addition to his house: an indoor strip club. Even as most scoffed at this outlandish addition, the 36-year-old remained defiant, reiterating that "you're not a real cricketer if you don't have a strip club at home".
But never did one imagine that this languidness would snowball into such crassness. To think that their marquee player has a strip club at home is a scandalous thought that the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) would not even like to entertain. What they will more openly talk about is his wretched form.
In nine matches this Indian Premier League season, Gayle has scored a paltry 151 runs at an average of 16.77. A couple of seasons ago, he bludgeoned the opposition for 175 in a single game. And, he has seldom got going in crunch games, allowing skipper Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers to take charge. Kohli won't be banking on him too much in Sunday's final either.
For all his exceptional talent, Gayle, as Andrew Flintoff likes to call it, has often in the past come across as an absolute "chop" - an old English slang for idiot. While fans love him for his batting, the cricket world would genuinely appreciate it if Gayle would assuage his persona with a dose of decorum.
According to another Jamaican legend, people roaming the countryside at night must be wary of a beastly, calf-like creature that violently chases down people. Surely, Gayle doesn't want to become that too.