KATHMANDU, Jan 31: One of the world’s cricket icons Chris Gayle is set to come to Nepal to play in the fourth edition of the Everest Premier League (EPL), after he was officially presented on Thursday. 

In a press meet organized in Kathmandu, Pokhara Rhinos, one of the EPL teams, announced that it had signed Gayle as the iconic player for this season. 

The team, however,  to sign Gayle, who is nicknamed ‘The Universal Boss’, did not disclose the amount of the deal. 

With the signing, Rhinos belive that the signing of the Jamaican superstar as the iconic player will not just strengthen the batting line up of the team but add up to the entire learning experience for the rest of the squad.

Gayle captained the West Indies Test side from 2007 to 2010 and is considered as one of the greatest batsmen ever in T20 cricket. Gayle has set numerous records across all three formats of the game and he is the most capped player for the West Indies in international cricket and is the only player to score a triplet of centuries – a triple hundred in Tests, double hundred in ODIs and a hundred in T20Is.  

Playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League (IPL), he scored a 30-ball century that became the highest individual T20 score (175 not out). Gayle holds the record for most centuries in T20 cricket (22) and 15 out of his 22 T20 centuries have been not out. 

On 18 April 2017, Gayle reached the 10,000 runs milestone in T20 cricket after scoring 77 runs off 38 balls playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore.

“It’s almost unbelievable that a man who is synonymous to T20 cricket will be playing for my team in Nepal’s biggest T20 event. The amount of attention he will bring to Nepali cricket upon his arrival is certainly going to do wonders to not just my team and the league, but the nation as a whole, especially while we’re celebrating Visit Nepal 2020.”

“When you’re talking Chris Gayle, you’re talking beyond cricket. Of course he is one of the finest the game has ever seen in terms of power-hitting and strong-will, but I feel the inclusion of Chris Gayle will benefit Nepali Cricket as a whole and also the promotion of Visit Nepal 2020,” Mananging Director of the EPL Aamir Akhtar said. 

“While he is here, we will make him visit iconic places in accessible locations and perhaps, make him tweet or post about it to promote Nepal all over the world. It was after months of negotiations that we have landed Chris Gayle and now its up to every Nepali, whether a cricket fan or not, to utilize his presence to the optimum.” The tournament is set to start from March 14 to 28 this year. 

 
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