Never seen Gayle play so well, says Vettori

BANGALORE: Royal Challengers Bangalore dished out an all-round show in their final league clash against Chennai Super Kings but once again it was Chris Gayle who took centre stage with his stormy batting to ensure an emphatic win with 12 balls to spare.
RCB skipper Daniel Vettori acknowledged the southpaw's batting might in no few words. "I have never seen him play this well.It has been amazing the way he played since he turned up for us. It is not slogging but good cricket shots, utilizing his strength," pointed out the Kiwi.
CSK coach and Vettori's compatriot Stephen Fleming too was all praise for Gayle. "I haven't seen a player making such an impact in a season. He's been phenomenal. It's by luck that he was available to RCB through the injury to Nannes. If you get Chris Gayle out, you've a chance (to win against RCB)," said Fleming.
Though it has been a dream run for Gayle, the team heads into the playoffs unsure about the Jamaican's opening partner. Against CSK, the Bangalore-based side used its fourth opening combination in as many matches and Vettori admitted that the team management is yet to round off on a particular player for the important job.
"It is not about the surprise factor. We are searching for that right combination since Tillakaratne Dilshan left. Today we wanted to give AB (de Villiers) a decent bat because Chris and Virat (Kohli) have batted so well up the order. It didn't work today but I know how good a player AB is. So, he could be an option in the next game as well. Luke Pomersbach is another option and we have a couple of other ones up our sleeve as well. So we will see how the wicket is and who the opponents are in the next game and take a call on that," explained Vettori.
CSK suffered their fifth away defeat in seven attempts and Fleming attributed it to the conditions. "This year the conditions have been quite different around the venues. Here there was probably a little bit more bounce, little bit more swing and seam. Maybe we're playing one style of cricket for all venues and not adjusting quick enough. We made some simple mistakes. We had an off day," stated Fleming.