'Test cricket is in a bit of trouble'- Chris Gayle

Former West Indies captain Chris Gayle has sounded alarm bells for Test cricket. He believes that smaller nations aren't getting enough opportunities to excel and improve in the longest format.

Speaking on TalkSport Radio, Gayle, who represented the West Indies in 103 Tests during the 2000s and the early 2010s, said that big nations like Australia, India and England get to play extended Test series against each other while the lower rung sides like the West Indies don't get as much exposure.

Gayle added that teams like the West Indies aren't going to improve unless they get consistent exposure, urging the International Cricket Council (ICC) to do something about it urgently.

"Test cricket is in a bit of trouble. I'm worried more about the lower-ranked teams. They are not getting full support. The game is such a business now, and you have the lower-ranked teams getting one or two Test matches. It's always about England, India, and Australia. 

Those are the big teams who play four or five Test matches against each other; we don't get that chance with the lower-ranked teams. So it's a struggle for us. We will always be down at the bottom, and that's not good for the sport. It will be a big challenge, and the ICC needs to look into that. That's very key," said Gayle.

Gayle also talked about the impact that franchise T20 leagues like the Indian Premier League have had over the game of cricket in the last decade or so.

"At first, I was looking at the easy way out. Shorter format, you can finish quicker. I wasn't looking to the future. Since that game, the Stanford game, the $20million game. That changed everything within the sport of T20. That's why you see so many leagues now. The IPL is the biggest one and pays out more. You can get a future out of this game. T20 cricket is a life-changing aspect; it changes a lot of lives. It has for me. I'm really happy where it's at today," he further added.

Gayle represented the West Indies in 103 Tests between 2000-14, scoring 7215 runs @ 42.19 with the help of 15 100s, three double-tons and a couple of triple hundreds.