Ravichandran Ashwin reacts to the controversy surrounding Ollie Robinson
England’s right-arm fast bowler Ollie Robinson made his debut for the English team during the first Test of the two-match series against New Zealand at the Lord’s in London. Just a few hours after his debut, Robinson grabbed all the limelight in the cricket fraternity but for all the wrong reasons.
The 27-year-old did fairly well in his maiden appearance for the English side as he picked a four-wicket haul in the first innings followed by three wickets in the third innings. Ollie also acted as an able lower-order batsman for the England side by adding 42 to the scoreboard in England’s first batting innings.
However, Robinson’s impressive performance with the willow and ball was overshadowed by his tweets that were made in 2012. On Day 1 of the Test between England and New Zealand, a series of tweets surfaced on social media where Robinson made some derogatory remarks on Asians, Muslims, and women in general.
One noteworthy point here is that Ollie was just 18 years old when he made such racial tweets. Though Ollie issued a public apology for his nine-year-old remarks, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) isn’t in a mood to let the matter slide. ECB has decided to conduct a proper investigation over the entire fiasco and in the same light, has suspended Ollie Robinson from all forms of international cricket.
“England and Sussex bowler Ollie Robinson has been suspended from all international cricket pending the outcome of a disciplinary investigation following historic tweets he posted in 2012 and 2013,” the ECB said in a statement on Sunday.
Ravi Ashwin expresses his views on Twitter
The cricket fraternity has different opinions on the suspension. While many sided Robinson saying that ECB were too harsh and one shouldn’t be punished for the deeds he did as an 18-year-old, there is a particular section of fans and cricket analysts who believe that this will act as a lesson for many out there.
India’s ace spinner Ravi Ashwin also put forward his views on the entire controversy as he expressed his sympathy with Ollie. Ashwin also believes that the suspension will act as a strong lesson for the younger generation regarding the use of social media.
“I can understand the negative sentiments towards what #OllieRobinson did years ago, but I do feel genuinely sorry for him being suspended after an impressive start to his Test career. This suspension is a strong indication of what the future holds in this social media Gen,” Ravi Ashwin wrote on Twitter.
