Chris Gayle Fined For Asking Reporter Out On Air

Gayle was talking to Melanie McLaughlin of Australia's Channel Ten when she asked him about the "aggressive" batting style that had seen him score 41 runs from just 15 deliveries on Monday night.

The former West Indies captain said: "To see your eyes for the first time is nice. Hopefully (we'll) win this game and we can have a drink after. Don't blush, baby."

A visibly rattled McLaughlin replied: "I'm not blushing."

The interview took place during a Big Bash League (BBL) game between Gayle's Melbourne Renegades and the Hobart Hurricanes. Renegades won the game by five wickets.

Renegades have fined Gayle AU$10,000 (£4,890) for the comments.

Facing a large media scrum at Melbourne Airport, Gayle apologised but defended his remarks as a "simple joke".

"It seemed to be blown out of proportion. There wasn't anything at all you know meant to be disrespectful to Mel," he said.

Renegades chief Stuart Coventry made a formal apology to McLaughlin.

"Mel is an outstanding sports presenter. We think of her very highly and the club and the players will ensure we work with her in a professional and respectful manner in the future," he said.

"We've had several discussions with Chris in the last 24 hours and he has acknowledged that his comments were out of line."

Mr Coventry added: "It could be a cultural thing but it is unacceptable here in Australia and we don't condone that sort of behaviour."

Amid reports Gayle is notorious for making inappropriate comments to female reporters, Mr Coventry said: "We think this is a one-off scenario."

He said Gayle was "quite surprised" by the fine, but accepted it.

The fine will be donated to the McGrath Foundation, a breast cancer charity.

Earlier, Big Bash chief Anthony Everard said Gayle's comments were "disrespectful and simply inappropriate".

"This league is all about its appeal to kids, families and females," he said.

"There's just no place in the BBL or, for that matter, cricket anywhere, for that sort of behaviour."

Andrew Flintoff, who is working as a commentator in Australia, tweeted: "Well played @mel Mclaughlin!! Big fan of @henrygayle but made himself look a bit of a chop there."