World Cup 2015: Viv Richards hails Chris Gayle's phenomenal double century

West Indies legend Sir Viv Richards has lavished praise on swashbuckling batsman Chris Gayle for his blistering World Cup double-ton against Zimbabwe, describing his knock as the 'stuff champions are made of'.

Gayle smacked a staggering 215 runs and claimed two wickets to guide the West Indies to a 73-run win over Zimbabwe, and earn two points to lift his side to second place in Pool B.

Also Read: Trivia about the West Indies at the World Cup

West Indies suffered a four-wicket defeat against Ireland in their opener at Nelson but came back strongly to clinch a massive 150-run victory over Pakistan, before humbling Zimbabwe by 73 runs. Reflecting on West Indies' back-to-back wins, Richards said that their 'response and the talent in the team were potent'.

In light of Gayle's performance, Richards said that it was a 'phenomenal innings' and was 'the stuff champions were made of', adding that it should be on a 'more consistent basis', the BBC reported. 

The West Indies will next play South Africa on Friday at Sydney.