Gayle a boundary too far for CD?
It had looked promising, but Central Districts’ dream of a greenclad Chris Gayle launching at the Pukekura Park cricket boundaries in January is fading.
CD chief executive Pete de Wet said their attempt to lure sponsorship to sign a ‘‘superstar’’ for the Twenty20 Super Smash starting next Wednesday had so far fallen short.
As it stands, de Wet said the Stags would go without an import after their Sri Lankan star Mahela Jayawardene said he wouldn’t be returning as he scales back his playing commitments.
Gayle is certainly on the Stags’ wish list for the second half of the competition, with his West Indies commitments ending on January 3, but unless a benefactor materialises in the next few weeks they won’t initiate talks with the self-named ‘World Boss’.
‘‘We generally don’t fund these acquisitions out of our budget and we try and secure funding from outside parties, and we haven’t been able to get a level of support required to bring anyone in yet. At this stage we don’t have any [import] planned,’’ de Wet said.
Jayawardene proved a standout signing in the last two seasons for the Stags but his appearance was subsidised by being a brand ambassador for Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology which has links with Sri Lanka. He averaged 45.87 last season and led the Stags to the Super Smash final where they lost to Wellington.
The six major associations all run a tight ship and rely heavily on NZ Cricket grants for their day to day operations. Imports are often funded by benefactors or corporate sponsors.
De Wet wouldn’t say what kind of money they’d need to approach Gayle but they had a target figure in mind.
Big stars like Gayle, currently playing alongside Brendon McCullum for Rangpur Riders in the Bangladesh Premier League, typically command around $50,000 for a full season. If he was only available for the last four or five games and the playoffs, and was in the country already, potentially $20,000 could be a starting point.
‘‘We wouldn’t just want to get a run of the mill player. We’d want a superstar and they don’t come cheap so we haven’t been able to get to that point yet,’’ de Wet said.
The Stags were very close to snaring Gayle’s services in January 2013 for two New Plymouth matches after his Australian Big Bash commitments, but the deal fell through late.
If they somehow snared Gayle after the final T20 against the Black Caps on January 3 he could potentially play three matches at New Plymouth’s postage stamp Pukekura Park: on January 4, 6 and 12, as well as Otago in Invercargill on January 9 and Wellington at the Basin Reserve on January 14.
The Super Smash could certainly do with some star power, with the Black Caps in action throughout against West Indies and Pakistan, and other big names playing across the Tasman in the Big Bash.
Canterbury import Ben Stokes is not guaranteed to play any longer than Sunday’s Ford Trophy round three match in Christchurch, depending on England commitments.
Other sides to have confirmed T20 imports are the defending champion Firebirds, who secured title-winning Nottinghamshire allrounder Samit Patel, and Auckland who announced teenage Surrey allrounder Sam Curran after they had fast bowler Tymal Mills last season.