New video allegedly "proof" racist slur aimed at Indian star at SCG
Cricket chiefs and NSW police have launched an investigation into allegations of racial abuse towards the Indian team from parts of the crowd during the third Test, after six people were ejected and play halted for close to 10 minutes on Sunday.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) probe followed Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah allegedly being targeted as they were on the field.
Play was paused for the second time on Sunday when Siraj approached the umpire and pointed towards the crowd.
The six men were immediately removed from the seats by police.
“Siraj was referred to as ‘Brown Dog’ and ’Big Monkey’ both of which are racist slurs. The matter was immediately brought to the notice of on-field umpires. They were constantly abusing Bumrah too,” a BCCI source told the Press Trust of India.
The Times of India newspaper said that the fans on Saturday had been drunk. “Bumrah and Siraj were called monkeys, w**ker and motherf**ker by the people almost throughout the time they were fielding,” it claimed.
Footage showing the crowd chanting at Siraj has surfaced but it's unclear what was said.
Well this is some proof......
🙄🙄🙄🙄#INDvsAUS #racism #AUSvINDtest pic.twitter.com/NL47ztRfOZ— Rithvik Shetty (@Shetty10Rithvik) January 10, 2021
While you can mainly hear people chanting "Siraj", some people claim they can hear racial abuse faintly in the background.
According to Cricket Australia (CA) multiple people from the crowd had been questioned before being thrown out by police.
“While we await the outcome of the investigation by NSW Police, CA has launched its own inquiry into the matter,” said CA’s head of integrity and security Sean Carroll, calling the episode “regrettable”.
India captain Virat Kohli, who is missing the last three Tests of the four-match series for the birth of his first child, tweeted that such racist behaviour was “pathetic”.
“Having gone through many incidents of really pathetic things said on the boundary Iines, this is the absolute peak of rowdy behaviour,” Kohli tweeted. “It’s sad to see this happen on the field.
“The incident needs to be looked at with absolute urgency and seriousness and strict action against the offenders should set things straight for once.”