Gayle Closer to IPL 2020 Start for KXIP

Missed Sunrisers clash with illness

Shimron Hetmyer Chris Gayle West Indies

Chris Gayle was due to play for Kings XI Punjab against Sunrisers Hyderabad but missed out through illness.

The West Indian IPL star came down with a bout of food poisoning and had to sit out the clash, according to Punjab head coach Anil Kumble.

Kumble spoke to broadcasters during the match and revealed Gayle’s absence. He said: “Today we wanted Chris Gayle in the playing XI but unfortunately he’s sick.

“Gayle was going to play but he is down with food poisoning for the last of a couple of days.”

Gayle is the highest run-scorer in the T20 format but has not been considered due to the form of openers KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal.

However, he proved another big miss for struggling KXIP as they fell to a fifth loss in six games.

England batsman Jonny Bairstow led SRH to victory by smashing 97 off 55 balls, including six sixes and seven fours.

He also shared a 160-run stand with fellow opener David Warner as Hyderabad went on to record a 69-run success after KXIP were bowled out for 132.

Gayle could now be available for Kings XI’s next game. They take on Kolkata Knight Riders on October 10.

Prabhsimran Singh Given Chance

Despite the absence of Gayle, KXIP still made three other changes to their side as they looked to turn their fortunes around.

Prabhsimran Singh, Arshdeep Singh and Mujeeb Ur-Rahman all came into the starting XI in place of Chris Jordan, Harpreet Brar and Sarfaraz Khan.

On the inclusion of young Prabhsimaran Singh, Kumble said: “We felt Prabhsimran has shown a lot of talent over the last couple of months that he’s here and we know that he’s an exciting talent.

“This was the game we felt we could give him an opportunity.”

Warner and Bairstow Too Strong

The partnership between Jonny Bairstow and David Warner was too much for KXIP to handle.

On batting with Bairstow, Warner said after the match: “I don't know why people think there's so much hatred between the two countries. It's going well, at the moment I'm just giving him strike.

“We really enjoy batting together out there. We tried to take it to them and fortunately enough today we were able to get through the powerplay.”

New title

Chris is passionate about all forms of cricket and loves writing about the sport. He has a background in both sport and news journalism and has written cricket and other sports content for several years now. Chris has written about all levels of the game from regional club cricket in England to the international stage. He now brings that experience to the iGaming industry where he combines it with his love of betting. Chris loves to bet on many different sports, but particularly enjoys seeking out the best value bets on offer and passing that on through his coverage.