Gayle a marked man for upcoming Champions Trophy
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (CMC) — South Africa captain AB de Villiers has named West Indies opening batsman Chris Gayle among players to look out for in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy.
Gayle is considered the most dangerous cricketer in the world and underlined his supremacy last month with an astonishing innings of 175 not out for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) that came with a number of records.
The South African captain has also singled out Indian Cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has been producing impressive scores in the IPl as skipper of tournament leaders Chennai Super Kings.
“The nature of ODI cricket is such that any player can take the game away on the day,” said De Villiers whose country has not won the trophy since 1998.
“I think looking specifically at our group, Chris Gayle is one of the major players that stands out, as well as Mahendra Singh Dhoni who is a master-class with the bat.”
South Africa is in Group B alongside world champions India, current ICC World Twenty20 holders West Indies and Pakistan.
Australia, England, New Zealand and Sri Lanka make up group A.
The ICC champions Trophy runs from June 6 to 23 in England and Wales.