GROS-ISLET, St Lucia (CMC) — Chris Gayle continued to be contrite about West Indies’ meek exit from the Twenty20 World Cup, but believes West Indies cracked under the pressure of being host nation.

West Indies bowed out of the T20 World Cup on Tuesday, following a six-wicket defeat by Australia at the Beausejour Cricket Ground.

Choosing to bat, West Indies’ batting again flopped, when they were dismissed for 105 in 19 overs, and the Australians successfully chased a target of 106 to win with 22 balls to spare.

“There are no excuses,” said the West Indies captain. “I apologise to the fans for the display of cricket we played in this T20 World Cup. We still have to hold our heads high. We have worked really hard, but it was just unfortunate.”

Gayle swiftly dismissed suggestions that there was unrest in the side, a common feature when the side has under-performed in the past.

“There are no problems within the camp,” he said. “The team spirit has been good. It’s just on the on-field — inconsistency — that’s where we are lacking, and we tried everything to actually get that right, but it just didn’t happen.”

He added: “It’s always going to be difficult for a team hosting any event. The added pressure even though you know the conditions well.

“People spend their money to come to see decent cricket, and whenever you don’t give them that sort of performance, it’s always going to be on the back foot for us.

He said, “That’s more pressure for us as well. It’s a situation, where we will just have to try to overcome these situations whenever this happens again.”

Gayle, one of the World’s leading batsmen in the Twenty20 format, admitted that he also felt the personal pressure of the responsibility that the fate of the side rested so much in his hands.

“It’s been severe pressure,” he said. “A lot was on my shoulder. I was hoping that someone would take some of that pressure off in the batting department, but it did not happen throughout this tournament.

“It’s been disappointing. I tried my best. Not saying that others did not try their best, but the pressure was there, and maybe sometimes I tried too hard, and dug too deep, and got myself in trouble – wanting to do too much instead of playing my role and letting it come naturally.”

Gayle welcomed the support his side received throughout the competition, and paid tribute to scores of West Indies supporters that attended the matches in Guyana, St Lucia, and Barbados, and cheered his side on.

“It was really good, man,” he said. “Pot covers and those things beating sounded good. It brought back memories. The turnout has been brilliant.

“I must commend [the crowds] for this, and it’s just unfortunate that we did not carry on to the semi-finals. We can’t complain about the crowd turnout. The support was very good and I must say again, thanks to all the fans who came out and supported us.”

West Indies will need the same level of support, when they tackle South Africa in a bilateral series, starting next week.

They meet the Proteas in two T20 and five One-Day Internationals, as well as three Tests over the next six weeks.

“We have the South Africa home series coming up, so we still have to focus,” he said. “Hopefully, we can give the fans something about which to cheer then.”