West Indies legend Chris Gayle says he stands by calling former team-mate Ramnaresh Sarwan “a snake”, “evil”, “wicked”, and “poison” because his words were “spoken from the heart”.

Gayle, 40, verbally lashed out last month and blamed Jamaica Tallawahs assistant coach Sarwan for his release from the Caribbean Premier League team.

“In so far as my resentment at the treatment, I stand by my comments in those videos,” said Gayle, who also called Sarwan “vindictive”, “immature”, and “despicable”.

Gayle, West Indies leading run scorer in one-day internationals, added: “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.

“It was my greatest wish to finish my Caribbean Premier League (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.

“Having said that, I must be honest and say that I now realise how portions of my comments may be viewed as being damaging to Cricket West Indies, and to the CPL Tournament and its brand – a tournament which I have sincerely enjoyed not just being a part of, but also helping to build and promote.

“It was never my intention to damage the T20 tournament. Playing in the CPL has guaranteed an opportunity for the past seven years to play in front of the great fans of the Caribbean. This is a privilege which I genuinely appreciate and have never taken for granted.”

The CPL had urged Gayle to make a statement on the comments he made in a video posted on YouTube and said the matter is now closed.

Gayle led the Tallahwahs to the CPL title in 2013 and 2016 and, after a spell with St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, returned to the franchise last year.

Despite scoring 116 in his second game, he managed only 243 runs in 10 innings as the Tallawahs finished bottom of the table.

He is preparing for the new season – due to start in August – where he will play for St Lucia Zouks.