Gayle on fire again

NEW DELHI, India (CMC):

Talismanic opener Chris Gayle sent his strongest message yet to West Indies selectors yesterday, smashing a whirlwind, unbeaten century for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League to become the first-ever player to cross 700 runs in the multimillion-dollar tournament.

The left-handed Gayle, who recently ended a stand-off with the West Indies Cricket Board that had ruled him out of selection for the last year, finished with a sublime 128 off 62 balls, an innings that laid the foundation for RCB's 21-run victory over Delhi Daredevils.

Gayle now has 706 runs and has now slammed a century and four half-centuries in his last seven IPL innings.

Yesterday, he belted seven fours and 13 sixes, equalling the most sixes in an innings in the IPL.

Scores: Royal Challengers 215 for one; Delhi Daredevils 144 for nine.