'They chop and change man, it is ridiculous': Gayle blasts ex-team PBKS for 'disappointing' treatment of Mayank Agarwal
Chris Gayle heavily criticised the Punjab Kings for their treatment of Mayank Agarwal as the latter goes under the hammer in the IPL 2023 Auction.
Ahead of the 2023 Indian Premier League auction, the Punjab Kings released star India batter Mayank Agarwal, who had led the side in the previous edition of the league. Mayank had been a part of the franchise since 2018 and formed an explosive opening pairing with KL Rahul until the latter left the side earlier this year. Following Rahul's departure, Mayank took over the reins as the captain of Kings; however, the PBKS endured a poor season with the side finishing sixth (7 wins and as many losses in 14 matches).
Mayank will go under the hammer in the IPL auction on December 23 but West Indies superstar Chris Gayle, who had played alongside Mayank during the 2020 and 2021 editions of the Indian Premier League in Punjab, criticised the franchise for their “disappointing” treatment of Mayank.
Also read: IPL Auction: SRH, PBKS will have to play their cards right
“Mayank will definitely get picked. I would be very disappointed if he doesn't. Because he is such an explosive player,” Gayle told PTI.
"He has probably hurt within himself at not being retained by Punjab after what he sacrificed for the franchise and to be treated like that is disappointing but I hope teams still believe in him and give him good money. He is a fantastic team man as well," said Gayle in an interaction arranged by Jio Cinema ahead of IPL auctions.
Gayle has started his IPL career with Kolkata Knight Riders while his best years were with Royal Challengers Bangalore; his final appearance in the tournament came for the PBKS.
Gayle said an unsettled playing eleven has contributed to Punjab's inconsistency over the years.
“They chop and change man, it is ridiculous. You keep chopping and changing, they never have a set eleven whether you win a match. Sometimes they would go with the same team but so often players don't feel comfortable (with too much changes),” said Gayle.
“When they do get a chance and IPL is already pressure, so (with that sort of approach) you end putting more excessive pressure and with that you won't see them flourishing within the game.”