Gayle targets end to England agony

London:

West Indies captain Chris Gayle would love nothing more than to get the better of England when the sides meet at the Oval on Monday 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 have everything to play for and will give it our best.

"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.

"It might not look like it affects you, but it's a mental thing as well," Gayle said.

"We played a day/night game then came here to play a day game. Less than 24 hours later and you are back on the field again.

"It would have been nice if it was another five o'clock (1600GMT) game to give us a bit more of a break.

"We didn't get much time to plan for South Africa, but we are cricketers and this is what we are here to do.

"Twenty20 may look simple but it takes a lot out of you mentally and can be draining but the itinerary was like this and we came to play a good game of cricket today."

He added: "It's disappointing to lose, but I have to commend the guys for the efforts that they put in after the victory against India and then coming here."

Gayle's own form has deteoriated since his 50-ball innings against Australia.

He sat out the match with Sri Lanka and could only manage a laboured 22 against India while Saturday's match saw him manage a mere five runs before he fell to South Africa teenage quick Wayne Parnell.

"I have a couple of injuries," he said. "At some stage I should be having surgery but I'm still giving 100 percent for the team in whatever area I can contribute and I'm ready to go."