Gayle rides out captaincy storm

Chris Gayle plans to create a "good environment" for his charges ahead of their Test series against Australia after months of constant upheaval in West Indian cricket

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West Indies captain Chris Gayle has vowed the latest furore over his leadership will not disrupt the side's preparation for the opening Test against Australia at the Gabba.

Gayle spent four months on the sidelines while the West Indies Players' Association was involved in a contract dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board, but an agreement between the two parties means he reclaims the reins for the tour to Australia.

The 30-year-old batsman has received a fair amount of criticism this year, most recently when Sir Viv Richards claimed Gayle needs to change his attitude while nominating Daren Ganga as a candidate for skipper.

Gayle has been in transit since Richards aired his views, but was characteristically unmoved when informed about the comments.

"That's life. He doesn't have to deal with the situation I'm currently in," Gayle said. "It's part of the package as captain. The negativity will always be there.

"I'm trying to move on. It doesn't make sense to have a fight at each other; we're all West Indian."

Gayle's trademark cool character remained intact for the duration of his first media conference on Australian soil, but he warned that might not always be the case.

"The negativity, I wont take too much of it on, unless something might actually trigger out a line, then I might have to take it on," he added.

"But if that situation occurs we'll deal with it at that point of time. Our main focus is to represent the West Indies and do well against Australia."

Gayle, who said he was thankful for the captaincy, is excited by the challenge of reshaping a West Indies side that features plenty of fresh faces, many of which only had their chance to shine due to the recent contract dispute.

"I'm going to try and create a good environment, get that unity on track and (get) the support of every player going out there in the middle," he continued.

"There are quite a few youngsters in the team as well. We'll have to try and gel as a unit and take it from there."