Rain, goli cricket and Baz's desire

One can only imagine the carnage that will be unleashed if both Chris Gayle and Brendon McCullum click simultaneously when they open the innings for Rangpur Riders in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).  The opposition bowlers will however pray that this kind of coup will not happen. It is however not sure whether the Comilla Victorians will be the first potential victims of the devastating duo as the clash between Rangpur and Comilla may be marred by the persistent rain, with the rain forecast to continue till Sunday due to the depression at the Bay.

McCullum, however, provided some solace for the bowlers when he said yesterday that he would only love to watch Gayle hitting sixes. McCullum arrived in the city on Tuesday and has been practising with the team while Gayle just arrived yesterday.

“We get on really well off the field. We played together before for the Kolkata Knight Riders not too far away from here in Dhaka. It'd be nice to reunite that partnership. Chris is one of the most devastating batsmen in the T20 format, so it would be nice to open the batting with him. I'll probably just try and give him the strike and watch him hit sixes,” McCullum, affectionately called Baz, responded to the reporters when asked about his opening partner.

Rangpur Riders will be the team to watch out for as after Chris Gayle's (L) arrival yesterday, they will have the most destructive opening pair imaginable in the pair of the West Indian and New Zealand former skipper Brendon McCullum. Photos: Star

The former New Zealand captain however was quick to shift from the light-heartedness to serious business when talking about his team's chances in the tournament.

“We're one win from three games but it's a long tournament. You need to make sure you remain very calm. We've got a calm support staff and calm captain and we know we'll come right. We've got a quality line-up and once we get used to playing with each other we'll do well. But there's a lot of very, very good teams in this competition; we've got to make sure that we play well, not get too down on ourselves and make sure we keep putting our best foot forward,” he said.

McCullum also reserved some praise for his Rangpur captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza.

“I've played with him [Mashrafe] as well a few years back in Kolkata. Turned up yesterday and it was good to see him. He's a guy in his mid-30s and he's achieved so much in international cricket. He's held in such high regard all over the world as well. His longevity in the game is impressive too and I'm looking forward to playing under him,” he added.

Suddenly, rain made an appearance to interrupt the teams' preparations as well as carrying the threat of spoiling more games, like it did on Wednesday.

While some players continued their training indoors, others enjoyed a day's outing at the Lalbagh Fort in the old part of the city as the Dhaka Dynamites players visited the landmark and played 'goli' cricket in front of a cheering crowd. And nobody enjoyed it more than former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi as there is a rich tradition of this form of cricket in his country.

“Obviously, almost every cricketer started their cricket with such type of game. It's not about just cricket, we have a social life and the community we have... we have a lot of fans. They want to see their cricketers in the flesh. So, I am very happy today.

“It's very good. It's a historical place as well.  I think it's good not only for me but also for the team to move around and see Dhaka city. It's an opportunity to attract the community,” said the all-rounder.