| Player: | CH Gayle, WTS Porterfield |
| Event: | ICC World Twenty20 2009 |
DateLine: 2nd June 2009
Ireland skipper William Porterfield was full of praise for his West Indies counterpart Chris Gayle, following his match winning unbeaten 88.
When youre only defending 130 its always going to be difficult, Porterfield said. And when a player of his calibre gets going, its not easy to stop. It shows just what well be facing over the next week or so, and its up to us to improve as a team.
I feel were doing okay with the ball and in the field, its just with the bat we need to improve. We need to put more partnerships and bigger ones together when we bat. Weve got to learn to put a total together and how to build an innings.
I still think the guys dont realize how much time theyve got and are a bit impatient. Its not always about hitting the ball out of the ground. Weve got guys coming in down the order who can up the rate if needed, so theres no need to panic early on. Weve got 120 balls and if we can cut out the dot balls, thats always going to give you a decent total.
Were still learning the best way to play this form of the game, and the players have to work out their strategy and game plan to be effective. A few of the guys today got starts but didnt kick on. Although its a shorter form of the game, the same principles apply - playing proper cricket shots and building an innings, he said.
On the decision to bat first Porterfield said, I would have batted first yesterday as well if Id had the chance. It takes a bit of the pressure off if you have a score on the board rather than chase. The pitch isnt going to deteriorate or change much in just 40 overs, so it isnt much of an issue.
