David Warner has revealed he was in a "bad place" when he punched England batsman Joe Root two years ago.
The Australia opener was suspended after hitting Root in a Birmingham bar ahead of the Ashes in 2013, after also being embroiled in a Twitter row with two Australian journalists.
Warner has since let his batting do the talking, becoming a key player at the top of order in all formats of the game as Australia prepare to defend the urn in England.
The 28-year-old left hander looks back at his antics with regret, but said he was going through a difficult time due to off-field issues.
He told the Cricket Monthly: "I was in a bad place. I had been in India for 14 weeks [with Australia and playing in the Indian Premier League] and hadn't seen my family and there was a lot of personal stuff going on at home that was causing me a lot of stress and pain.
"I can't use that as an excuse, that would be a cop out. That is my stuff to deal with and no excuse for what I did, I was drunk, I didn't like the guy and I might have done what I did anyway.
"I did the right thing by ringing him and when we left it everything was fine but someone else got a hold of it and wanted to make some mileage out of it and you know English journalism."
Mickey Arthur was sacked at Australia head coach just before the Ashes two years ago and Warner felt some responsibility for the South African's dismissal.
He said: "I feel bad because it was all around the same time and I think what happened was the last straw for him and they used it as a reason to get rid of him.
"Obviously there was other stuff they weren't happy about. I have spoken to him and he was understanding. He is a gentleman and says, 'Don't be silly, it has nothing to do with you', but credit to the guy he is a very, very, very nice man. I owe him a lot."