Sensible Gayle

Chris Gayle's captaincy yesterday at Sabina Park on the first day of the first England-West Indies test, in not changing the field after Kevin Pietersen had just launched into Suleiman Benn for a 4,4,6 on his way to 97, has been justfiably praised. I think its important to see his refusal to change the field when Pietersen was cutting loose as a very good demonstration of cricketing common sense. For note that had he pushed the field back when Pietersen back, the most likely course of action would have been a deft single or two, a safe passage to the century. Instead, by not changing the field, the temptation to finish off business with a boundary remained strong for KP. It would have been easier to discipline himself to go for a single with the field pushed back than it was to restrain himself from going a boundary with the same field and bowler that had already netted him 14. Changing the field would have slowed things down and let KP have a think. Better to keep things going as they were, to let the rush of blood stay in KP's head. And it worked.