Chris Gayle: I'm the greatest, there is no debate in T20 cricket

He calls himself the Universe Boss. While some might say giving oneself a nickname that grand is arrogant, Chris Gayle usually gets away with it as he has his game to back it up. The Jamaican cricketer was in India recently when DT caught up with him to talk about his connect with India, why he thinks he’s the ‘Universe Boss’, and his decision to only hit fours and no sixes from now on.Not many know that Gayle started his senior cricket career in India, and not in the West Indies. He first toured India as a 19-year-old in the West Indies A squad back in 1998. “It was A-team cricket and I didn’t have a name back then, so I didn’t get that sort of rush and attention,” Gayle recounts. The southpaw says that he cherishes that memory more than the world record of 175 in the IPL several years later. He tells us, “Everybody talks about that 175 I made in Bangalore whenever I’m asked about my favourite memory from India. But I have so many memories from here, starting with that first-class debut. That was something fantastic. It was in Pune (he played for West Indies A against Indian Youth XI in November ’98) and that’s something I’ll always remember. I’ll always remember that ground and city. I can never forget Pune. It’s always a pleasure playing cricket in India.”