Ahead of the IPL 2023 auctions, former West Indies and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batter Chris Gayle while talking to CricketNext.com put his weight behind Sam Curran and said that the England player might be the biggest gainer when he goes under the hammer. ‘The Universe Boss’ also talked about the time he spent at the RCB and the bond he shares with Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.
Excerpts.
Which West Indies player do you think can get big money in the auction?
Jason Holder can be someone who can go big and also Odean Smith.
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Among Sam Curran, Ben Stokes and Cameron Green, who can attract good amount of money?
My take would be Sam Curran and Ben Stokes. There would be some franchises who can go for over 16 crores for these two guys. Sam Curran is young and the franchises will be looking for the future as well. He is someone you want in a particular time right now.
Talk to us about the bond you share with Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers…
I had some great moments not just with Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers but also other players in the franchise. In RCB, I met Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, KL Rahul. Those guys were also fantastic. And of course, it was great to share the dressing room with the two greats, Kohli and ABD. We used to learn from each other.
We wanted to win the trophy but that didn’t just happen. I want to see that franchise lifting the cup. RCB will always be my team. I love that franchise and I’m glad that I was a part of it.
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175* for RCB or triple century in Test – You pick?
You know how hard it is to score triple centuries (laughs). 175* (in IPL) can be scored in less than an hour but triple centuries take a day and a half. But having said that, 175 was fantastic as well. It was great to become the highest scorer in the IPL. Chinnaswamy stadium has great atmosphere, great fans.
Can anyone surpass your 175*?
Absolutely…I have said this earlier as well. It can be broken. It would be interesting to when it will be broken and who breaks it. Records are meant to be broken. It’s definitely reachable.
Do you see someone scoring a double hundred in T20s?
It’s possible. On any particular day, if a batter gets going on, he can achieve that milestone.
Can there be another UNIVERSE BOSS?
Only one. There is only one UNIVERSE BOSS. There won’t be another one.
Catch all the TATA IPL 2023 Player Auction on Dec. 23 live at 1:00 PM on JioCinema
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