St. John's (Antigua), July 27: Swashbuckling batsman Chris Gayle has been named in the 14-member West Indies squad for the three-match ODI series against India.
Prior to the ODI series against England last March, Gayle had said that he planned to retire following the World Cup, but he had a change of mind during the tournament and has made himself available for this series. The self-proclaimed "Universe Boss" also has the extra motivation of two records for West Indies in this format to chase during the series.
Gayle now has 10,338 runs and needs 11 to pass batting legend Brian Lara (10,348) for the highest aggregate in ODIs for West Indies. He has also amassed 10,393 runs and needs 13 to again pass Lara (10,405) for the most runs by a West Indian in the history of ODIs.
"Chris is a very valuable player and he brings a lot of experience, a lot of knowledge, he lends a lot to any dressing room and it is great to have him in the squad," said interim West Indies head coach Floyd Reifer.
Besides Gayle, left-handed opener John Campbell, fellow batsman Roston Chase and all-rounder Keemo Paul have all been recalled to the squad for the three-match series which will be contested on August 8 at the Guyana National Stadium, and on August 11 and 14 at the Queen's Park Oval in Trinidad.
West Indies squad: Jason Holder (c), John Campbell, Evin Lewis, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, Roston Chase, Fabian Allen, Carlos Brathwaite, Keemo Paul, Chris Gayle, Sheldon Cottrell, Oshane Thomas, Shai Hope, Kemar Roach