Chris Gayle opts out ot CPL 2020 owing to personal reasons

06/23/2020

West Indies’ T20 superstar Chris Gayle, the highest run-getter in T20 history, has opted out of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2020 one day ahead of the player draft, owing to personal reasons. Gayle reportedly informed his new franchise, St Lucia Zouks, that he needed some family time.

The 2020 edition of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) will be without its country’s biggest star as Chris Gayle has confirmed that he has opted out of the tournament owing to personal reasons. According to an ESPN Cricinfo report, it is believed that Gayle informed his franchise St Lucia Zouks that he has not been able to spend time with his family due to being stuck in a different city and hence wants to use the CPL window to spend quality time with his children.

The news comes as a major blow for St Lucia Zouks as it was only a couple of months ago that the franchise had snapped up Gayle, after the Jamaican had publicly fallen out with his ex-franchise Jamaica Tallawahs. In what was a controversy that created a ripple in the entirety of Caribbean cricket, the 40-year-old Jamaican, in April, accused former teammate Ramnaresh Sarwan of being ‘a snake’. Gayle, on top of that, also held Sarwan responsible for his ousting from the Jamaica Tallawahs franchise and thus decided to sign with the Zouks for the forthcoming season.

However, now, Gayle’s announcement to not participate in the CPL comes as bad news for the Zouks, who were hoping to improve on their fifth-place finish in the 2019 season. Earlier this year, the Zouks saw a change in ownership, with the team being purchased by KPH Dream Cricket Private Limited, who also incidentally own the Kings XI Punjab franchise in the IPL. Zouks, on top of that, had also appointed Andy Flower as the side’s head coach.

Gayle’s decision means that the side will now have to restructure their plans for the player draft, that will take place on June 24.