Chris Gayle pulls out of CPL 2020 due to personal reasons

Veteran West Indies batsman Chris Gayle has opted out of this year’s Caribbean Premier League (CPL) citing personal reasons. The cricketer sent an official intimation to his franchise, St. Lucia Zouks. Gayle’s future at his new franchise remains uncertain.

Earlier this year, the ‘Universe Boss’ had a severe fallout with his former franchise, Jamaica Tallawahs after which he signed up with the Zouks. The reason, Gayle said, that he was undermined by several people in the team, including ex-teammate and assistant Tallawahs coach Ramnaresh Sarwan. He also went ahead and blamed the team owners for ‘playing a game’.

Gayle’s comments on his YouTube channel were met with heavy criticism. However, the CPL committee decided against a tribunal after the cricketer admitted his wrongdoing and apologised for the same. His statement at the time said:

“It was my greatest wish to finish my CPL career in Jamaica – playing in front of my home crowd at Sabina Park with the franchise that I had previously led to two CPL titles.”

Despite the Tallawahs re-signing him in 2019 as one of their marquee players, Gayle’s form kept dwindling as the tournament progressed. His below-par outing with the bat didn’t help, with the team failing to qualify for the playoffs.

The 2020 edition of the CPL is scheduled to take place in the Caribbean from August 18 to September 10, subject to government approval.