The quiet assassin

He started as a swashbuckling batsman in the Jayasuriya mould, but over time, he has learned responsibility and is today one of the mainstays of the West Indies batting. In last-year's ICC Champions Trophy, Gayle was named Man of the Series for his outstanding batting that saw the West Indies make the final for the second time running.

His performance at the Champions Trophy was proof that he is ready for the big stage. Having already played a World Cup (2003), Gayle knows the pressures of playing at that level. But for someone like him, this tournament will be tougher because of the home expectations and the fact that this is the first major tournament to be held in the Caribbean.

But Gayle, as cool as he looks on the field, is a firebrand and will no doubt have figured how to handle the pressure. Unlike the scenes in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy where he had a go at a few Australians, he will know to control himself better this time.

Gayle's World Cup record is too recent and has only 6 matches that fetched him 206 runs and four wickets in South Africa. But his form since January 2006 has been pretty good. He has scored 1,280 runs at 38.78 runs per innings including 4 centuries and 5 fifties. Moreover, in the 36 matches he has played since, he has picked up 34 wickets at a respectable 33.08 per wicket. This establishes him firmly as one of the team's premier all-rounders.

Gayle likes batting in home conditions and has scored 1,924 runs batting at home. He will be one of the crowd favourites and definitely the player to watch out for. He's deceptively good with the ball and quietly dangerous with the bat.

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