Gayle credited for sound advice and motivation

FRIDAY MAY 30, St. John’s Antigua – Opening batsman Xavier Marshall said

that sound advice from West Indies captain Chris Gayle gave him confidence and

motivation to work hard at this game.

"A couple months back Chris (told) me that it is up to me to go out there and

prove that I can do it, he told me to work hard and once I worked hard the runs

will come," Marshall told DigicelCricket.com shortly after the end of the first day's

play of the Second Digicel Test at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.

Ironically Marshall is playing in the game as a replacement for Gayle who was

again forced to sit out with an ongoing injury.

He also confessed that he was surprised that he was recalled to the West Indies

Test squad after being out for two and a half years since he played two Test

matches against Sri Lanka in the summer of 2005.

"I'm a bit surprised but I've been working hard over the past few months and I

guess when you work hard it pays off," said Marshall who was surprisingly

selected in the West Indies Test squad after the First Digicel Test in Jamaica

earlier in the week when he served as emergency fieldsman.

A bigger surprise came when at the toss he was announced as the second West

Indies opening batsman alongside Devon Smith. Marshall replaced the injured

Ryan Hinds in the squad and fellow Jamaican right handed opener Brenton

Parchment in the final eleven.

When asked what he thought was the reason for his surprising return to the

squad the super talented 22 year old said that his performance in the Australia

warm up game in Trelawny helped his cause.

"I think (it was) the practise game that we played against the Aussies before

(the start of the Digicel Home Series), I did not carry on but I think I looked

pretty good batting against the Aussies so I think that is one of the innings that

they (the West Indies selectors) looked at and brought me back here," Marshall

said.

In that game, playing for the Jamaica Select XI, Marshall, batting at number

three, made 30 and 31 respectively. On both occasions he was the second

highest top scorer but he suggested that during his performances he did not

look intimidated by the Australian bowling attack. Parchment also played in that

game, making 25 and 4 in the two innings.

Marshall also said that his three Carib Beer Series half centuries this season

aided his cause, but expressed disappointment at not getting any triple figure

score as "hundreds count".

Marshall who had some disciplinary infractions in his younger days claims that he

is long past that phase in his life and is more relaxed now.

"I think I am a bit more mature, people used to think I was a bit rough, now you

can see I am more relaxed, enjoying my team mates, friends and so on and I

think I am getting there," the soft spoken young man asserted.

He is looking to apply that frame of mind to his batting. "I want to go out there

and bat sensible, get a start for the team and carry on," Marshall revealed.

And he believes that a major threat will be Australian paceman Brett Lee who

bowled Marshall his first delivery at international cricket in a One Day

International in 2005 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

"I think I would have to pay attention to Lee because he has a bit more pace

than the rest and Stuart Clark as well (because) he hits one area on the strip

and I just have to concentrate," reasoned Marshall who only learnt of his

inclusion in the final eleven this morning.

He reckoned that while it was a difficult day in the field, the West Indies players

coped with it well barring the one missed catch by Runako Morton (who dropped

a straightforward chance from Simon Katich of Fidel Edwards when he was on

90).

Marshall said that he thought that the physical toll of playing back-to-back Test

matches might still have some of the players who played a grueling five days of

Test cricket in Jamaica a bit tired hence the sporadic lapses in the ground

fielding. (COURTESY-: digicelcricket.com)