Etihad Stadium management has been be warned; its roof will be in grave danger when Chris Gayle walks out to bat for the Melbourne Renegades.
The West Indian big hitter will suit up for his first Renegades' home match against the Sydney Sixers on Wednesday night and allrounder Dwayne Bravo says that the venue's retractable roof will be in the line of fire if it's closed for the game.
Asked on Tuesday if Etihad's relatively short boundaries would be to his teammate's liking, Bravo smiled broadly.
"Boundary size doesn't matter for Chris," Bravo replied.
"Chris Gayle is one of the best in the world. For me, I'm someone who turns up at cricket grounds and the first thing I look at is the ground, how many metres (the boundaries) are, but for Chris it doesn't matter. He'll just show up and bat."
The addition of Gayle to partner Australian Twenty20 captain Aaron Finch at the top of the order has given the Renegades one of the most destructive opening pairings in world cricket, with Bravo confident his side now has the talent to challenge for its first BBL title.
The laidback West Indian duo has proved a hit with fans and teammates alike, but Bravo warned that they're not just here to enjoy the Australian summer.
"As two overseas professionals we want to make sure that we get the Renegades into the top two to give ourselves the best chance of winning the title," he said.
"We play in tournaments to win - we don't just want to be a part of it."
The Renegades started their BBL05 campaign with a seven-wicket win over the Brisbane Heat and have made two changes to that squad with veteran spinner Nathan Hauritz and seamer Cameron Stevenson in for Cameron Gannon and Matthew Short.
The Sixers have played two games for a win and a loss and also made two changes with Ryan Carters in for Nick Larkin and spinner Riley Ayre replacing Nathan Lyon, who is on international duties in Melbourne.
