Internet Desk: Chris Gayle, the controversial West Indian cricketer, claimed on Friday (June 3) that he was a victim of “double standards” after sparking a sexism row with the comments he made to a female television reporter in Australia during Big Bash League last year. Gayle, 36, came under fire for asking Mel McLaughlin out on a date in a live interview during a Big Bash T20 game in January and using the words ‘don’t blush baby’ on television.
Gayle received a lot of criticism for this, as past and present cricketers condemned his behaviour. Cricket Australia too came down heavily and Melbourne Renegades, his BBL franchise, fined him 10,000 Australian dollars and decided not to renew his contract for next season.
Gayle fanned the flames further with the recent publication of his autobiography and in an interview last month with a female journalist in The Times magazine. In the article, the Jamaican boasted of his “very, very big bat”. He also asked journalist Charlotte Edwardes if she had ever “had” a black man and been in a threesome.
Gayle remains one of the biggest draw cards in world cricket and has just started a stint with Somerset in English cricket’s domestic T20 Blast event, having enjoyed a successful spell with the southwest county in 2015.
Despite his misdemeanours, Gayle feels the BBL has ignored his contribution towards making it a popular league.
“I didn’t feel like I was being treated right at that particular time,” he said in an interview with the BBC World Service’s Stumped programme. “The way of going about it… and the media making a big mockery out of it. To go into details, it was straight up just a lot of double standards.
Gayle went on to say that the recent article about his latest controversy did not affect him. “That story didn’t get me down one bit. It didn’t affect me, I must say. It was just ridiculous how they go about it — trying to use me as a big scapegoat.”
He added: “For someone being part of the Big Bash for so many years, who actually built the Big Bash from day one, the same name they used to build the Big Bash is the same name they want to tarnish.
“The Chris Gayle from the first season, if you check it, it was Chris Gayle who started that Big Bash and it blew up this big now — and next they want to say, ‘you should ban Chris Gayle… you should get rid of Chris Gayle from all leagues around the world… Chris is sexist’.
“You can’t brand me for running a joke like that, it’s just unfortunate and people have their agenda against other people as well.”
Coincidentally, the latest interview, with the BBC, was conducted by Alison Mitchell, another female sports broadcaster. She took to twitter to explain the experience of interviewing Gayle and to his credit, had only words of praise for him.
“For those asking, Gayle was engaging, interesting, both good humoured & serious – and nervous about a female interviewer,” she tweeted on Friday.”Gayle was prepared to ans (answer) all Qs (questions), and was generous with his time. There is more to him than his partying reputation,” Mitchell added.