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The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has assured that they will conduct a thorough investigation into Ollie Robinson’s tweet controversy.
Ollie Robinson’s Test debut was marred after some "racist and sexist" tweets he posted more than eight years ago resurfaced on social media platforms, leading to an apology from the bowler.
ECB chief executive officer Tom Harrison told the media that despite the tweets being old, they will launch an investigation into the matter as part of their "zero-tolerance" policy towards any form of discrimination. A disappointed Harrison said about Ollie Robinson’s controversial tweets:
"I do not have the words to express how disappointed I am that an England Men's player has chosen to write tweets of this nature, however long ago that might have been. Any person reading those words, particularly a woman or person of colour, would take away an image of cricket and cricketers that is completely unacceptable. We are better than this. We have a zero-tolerance stance to any form of discrimination and there are rules in place that handle conduct of this nature. We will initiate a full investigation as part of our disciplinary process.”
Harrison further asserted that the England team and the ECB will remain united in their fight against discrimination of any kind. He added:
“Our commitment to that effort remains unwavering, and the emergence of these comments from Ollie's past reiterates the need for ongoing education and engagement on this issue.”
Embarrassed by the racist and sexist tweets: Ollie Robinson
After Ollie Robinson’s controversial old tweets started doing the rounds on social media, the medium-pacer apologized and expressed regret for his actions.
Robinson took two of the three New Zealand wickets to fall on the opening day of the Lord’s Test, but his old tweets were making all the news.
In a statement released by the ECB, 27-year-old said:
"On the biggest day of my career so far, I am embarrassed by the racist and sexist tweets that I posted over eight years ago, which have today become public. I want to make it clear that I'm not racist and I'm not sexist. I deeply regret my actions, and I am ashamed of making such remarks. I was thoughtless and irresponsible, and regardless of my state of mind at the time, my actions were inexcusable. Since that period, I have matured as a person and fully regret the tweets.”
"Today should be about my efforts on the field and the pride of making my Test debut for England, but my thoughtless behaviour in the past has tarnished this. I would like to unreservedly apologise to anyone I have offended, my teammates and the game as a whole in what has been a day of action and awareness in combating discrimination from our sport," Ollie Robinson’s statement further added.
New Zealand ended day one of the Lord’s Test on 246 for 3, with debutant Devon Conway hammering an unbeaten 136. Ollie Robinson finished with 2 for 50 from 16 overs, dismissing Tom Latham (23) and Ross Taylor (14).
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