Gayle slams 75 for Kolkata

West Indies captain Chris Gayle stroked a measured half-century in his Indian Premier League season debut today but his team Kolkata Knight Riders suffered a seven-wicket defeat to Mumbai Indians in their Indian Premier League game.



The left-handed Gayle stroked 75 from 60 balls with four fours and two sixes as Kolkata Knight Riders rattled up 155 for three from their allotted 20 overs after choosing to bat first at the Brabourne Stadium.



However, Sachin Tendulkar unleashed a superb, unbeaten 71 from 48 balls with 10 fours to propel Mumbai to their target with nine balls to spare. It was Mumbai’s third win in fur outings.



Gayle’s West Indies counterpart all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, playing for Mumbai, was ineffective and his four overs cost 36 runs.



Big-hitting West Indies batsman Kieron Pollard failed to fire, however, scoring seven from as many balls in the 16th over with 27 runs left for victory.

Gayle went wicket-less in four overs, which cost 31 runs while Ishant Sharma was the leading bowler with two for 44.