Gayle targets end to England agony

West Indies captain Chris Gayle would love nothing more than to get the better of England when the sides meet at the Oval today in the Super Eight stage of the World Twenty20.

Earlier this season England hammered the West Indies in both a Test and one-day series.

It was an unexpected tour of England for the West Indies, only drafted in after Sri Lanka pulled out because of their players' Indian Premier League commitments.

Gayle, who had to cut short his own stay in the lucrative Twenty20 event, then had his own commitment questioned after he said he would not mind too much if Test cricket died out.

But having hammered a blistering 88 in the West Indies' defeat of Australia at the Oval earlier in the World Twenty20, Gayle's enthusiasm for this form of cricket is not in doubt.

West Indies beat defending champions India by seven wickets in the second round Super Eights at Lord's late on Friday, only to lose by 20 runs to tournament favourites South Africa after the fixture schedule saw them playing in Saturday's early game across London at the Oval.

"It would be nice to get the last say for the summer against England by beating them," Gayle, who revealed he might need an ankle operation, told reporters at the Oval. "This is the important one, they have been getting the better of us and it's a must-win.

"We are confident we can beat them and have done it before. There's no two ways about it, we will have to step up, it's a crucial game and can put us through to the semi-final."

In the meantime Gayle criticised the schedule, saying it had been unfair to his side although an International Cricket Council (ICC) spokesman told AFP that all teams had a chance to request changes several weeks ago and that the West Indies had not asked for any alterations.

LONDON, AFP