Gayle not worried by captaincy speculation

Chris Gayle has said he is not distracted by speculation about his West Indies captaincy, which was sparked by selectors overlooking him for the Jamaica captaincy for the Caribbean T20.

"I am not even focusing on that right now, to be honest," Gayle told the Jamaica Gleaner on his return to Jamaica after the tournament. "I am just here to enjoy myself and to enjoy the break as well, so I am not really paying any attention to that right now. I got a couple days [rest] so hopefully I can rebound again.

"[There are a] couple of tours coming up and I am looking forward to them. [There's] the 50-over format of the regional tournament and then we have the Sri Lankan tour. I am just going to enjoy the break right now."

Jamaica selectors named Tamar Lambert as captain for the Twenty20 tournament, and the move led to speculation over Gayle's tenure as West Indies captain, with WICB director Azim Bassarath criticising Gayle's leadership.

"I have said it before that after observing Chris Gayle for the T20 World Cup, I am of the view that he is not a good captain," Bassarath said recently. "He is a confused man when it comes to leading the team, and the Jamaica Cricket Association seems to have supported my view that he is not the best choice. I personally think that he is a poor captain."

Gayle has led West Indies in 20 of his 88 Tests since taking over nearly three years ago, but has won only three of those matches. He has 17 wins in 53 one-day internationals as captain.