Chris Gayle suffered an abdominal strain at the World Cup. —Photo by AFP

ST. JOHN’S: Former captain Chris Gayle has angered the West Indies Cricket Board by making himself unavailable for the entire home series against Pakistan so he can play in the IPL.

The WICB says in a statement on Wednesday that while Gayle was rehabilitating an abdominal strain he suffered at the World Cup under the supervision of team medical personnel in Jamaica, it assumed he was preparing for Pakistan.

Instead, it said it was “surprised” to discover he accepted a request from Royal Challengers Bangalore to join them as an injury replacement for the rest of the IPL and “did not accept” his reasons.

But as he wasn’t contracted to the WICB, Gayle was reluctantly granted a release by the board as he was already on his way to India.