'I have always respected him as an extraordinary talent' - Ramnaresh Sarwan shocked over Chris Gayle's allegations against him

West Indies cricketer Chris Gayle recently sparked controversy after making some serious allegations on his former teammates Ramnaresh Sarwan in a Youtube video. Gayle lashed out at Sarwan and had called him a ‘snake’. The West Indies opener also held Sarwan responsible for his ouster from the Tallawahs side.

Furthermore, Gayle slammed Tallawahs chief executive officer Jeff Miller and owner Krish Persaud and said that he was ‘playing a game’ to leave the West Indian batsman out of the squad.

Gayle had played for Jamaica Tallawahs between 2013 and 2016 before returning to the side in 2019. However, he was shown the exit door by the side and Gayle was eventually signed up by St Lucia for the 2020 edition of the Caribbean Premier League.

While replying to Gayle’s allegations, Ramnaresh Sarwan has also hit back at the opener’s claims. Sarwan has denied all the allegations levelled by Gayle and has said that he was in no way responsible for Gayle’s exclusion from the side.

Sarwan issued a 2-page statement on his Facebook account and said that all the allegations levelled against him were untrue. Sarwan also added he felt he should respond to Gayle’s allegations just because the public’s record must be set straight. According to Sarwan, he has always respected Gayle as an extraordinary talent, a colleague and a close friend. Hence, he was shocked knowing about Gayle’s allegations.

I have always respected Chris Gayle: Ramnaresh Sarwan

“I categorically deny any involvement in the decision or the decision-making process, which led to Gayle’s non-selection to represent the Jamaica Tallawahs in the 2020 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) Tournament,” Sarwan said.

“In that video, he has levelled false allegations and tarnished the good name and reputation of a series of persons,” Sarwan further said.

“I was the focus of most of the onslaughts. I reply, not because I feel that Gayle’s rantings are worthy of it, but because I feel that the public’s record must be set straight and also, to protect the character and careers of so many people, whose image he sought to besmirch,” he added.

“Let me make it abundantly clear, that I have played with Gayle from the inception of my international career and I have always respected him as an extraordinary talent, a colleague and most importantly, a close friend. Hence, my utter shock by these scandalous allegations,” said Sarwan.

Meanwhile, Jamaica Tallawahs also clarified that their decision to exclude Gayle from the squad was purely based on cricket and business reasoning. The franchise also cleared that Sarwan was not involved in the ousting of the explosive West Indies opener.