Former West Indies captain Daren Sammy says he has accepted a former teammate’s explanation of a potentially racist nickname he was given at the Sunrisers Hyderabad and hopes the issue can be used to educate players about racism. Earlier this week, the 36-year-old sought clarification from his former team mates over the nickname used for him when he was part of the Indian Premier League franchise from 2013-14.
Sammy said he did not know the meaning of a Hindi word that some unnamed Sunrisers teammates would call him and only became aware of its racial connotations after watching a TV show that discussed the issue. “I’m please(d) to say that I’ve had a really interesting conversation with one of the guys and we are looking at ways to educate rather than focusing on the negatives,” Sammy tweeted. “My brother reassured me that he operated from a place of love and I believe him.”
Separately in a video, Sammy advocated awareness to fight racism. “It’s a great opportunity to educate people about certain things that have been said or done, that even though you don’t mean it in any way to be degrading to someone else, but the fact that it can be perceived to (be) that or it could mean that.”
England may join Windies in potential BLM protest: Anderson
England will consider a joint anti-racism protest with West Indies during the three-Test series between the sides next month, pace bowler James Anderson has said. Visiting West Indies skipper Jason Holder has said it would be a team decision for them whether to protest the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died in Minneapolis last month after a white police officer knelt on his neck for almost nine minutes.
“It’s been a very thought-provoking few weeks for everyone,” Anderson told the British media on Thursday. “It’s made me do a lot of thinking. We will have conversations about what we can do as players to make a stand, definitely. I expect that to be a conversation we have.”
The International Cricket Council usually does not allow gestures supporting “political, religious or racial activities” but has decided to take a “common sense approach” for any potential Black Lives Matter (BLM) protest by the players.
Earlier this week, former England batsman Michael Carberry said cricket was “rife with racism”. Anderson, Test cricket’s most successful pace bowler, said he could not remember experiencing racism but felt players could help tackle the issue.
“I wasn’t in New Zealand when (teammate) Jofra Archer was racially abused. But it made me think...’Have I turned a blind eye to things?’ We need to actively make this game for everyone,” Anderson said. “Is there more I can do as a player to help the situation? Can I be more active? As players and a game we need to be more active.”
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