West Indies opening batsman Chris Gayle said that he stood by his comments expressing resentment over his exit from Caribbean Premier League (CPL) franchise Jamaica Tallawahs.
"I made these videos with one single intention - to explain to the fans in Jamaica the reasons behind what has now become my second departure from the Tallawahs franchise. In so far as my resentment at the treatment, I stand by my comments in those videos. My words were spoken from the heart," Gayle said in an official statement.
However, the swashbuckling batsman said that some comments made by him were a little damaging.
"Having said that, I must be honest and say that I now realize how portions of my comments may be viewed as being damaging to Cricket West Indies, and to the CPL Tournament and its brand. It was never my intention to damage the T20 Tournament, as playing in the CPL has guaranteed an opportunity for the past 7 years to play in front of the great fans of the Caribbean," he added.
Earlier, Gayle had blamed Ramnaresh Sarwan for his departure from Tallawahs.
"Sarwan, you are worse than the coronavirus right now. What transpired with the Tallahwahs, you had a big part to play. Sarwan, you are a snake. You know, you are not the most loved person in the Caribbean. You are still stabbing people in the back," Gayle had said in a video posted on his YouTube channel.
The left-handed batsman joined St Lucia Zouks as their marquee player for the 2020 CPL season after Tallawahs chose not to retain him.
Gayle had led the Jamaica Tallawahs to the title win in 2013 and 2016.
Gayle would have been in action for Kings XI Punjab in this year's Indian Premier League (IPL) had the tournament started on March 29.
However, the tournament has been postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.
( With inputs from ANI )
