If you ever ask a cricketer where he has seen the most cultured and most behaved crowds, it has to be the English crowd. From gentlemen wearing tuxedos to beautiful women in their alluring gowns, the English crowd is one of the best. The crowd also equally acknowledges the performance by a visiting player. Standing ovations, claps, and drums, when accolades are showered, all of them come through. But in recent times the picture has changed. The cultured Barmy Army that was once known for the honor they had is now called out for outrageous behavior. So, here’s a look at what all happened at the second test at Lords: –
Champagne bottle corks hurled at KL Rahul: –
Champagne Bottle corks were thrown at KL Rahul during the third day of the second test by some of the English fans. The 69th over of the English innings witnessed this incident. England skipper Joe Root and veteran Johnny Bairstow were at the crease when this happened. After the 4th ball of the over was bowled by Mohammad Shami, the fans ruthlessly threw the object at KL. After the over itself, the Indians discussed this issue with the on-field umpires, Richard Illingworth and Michael Gough.
A visibly bothered Virat Kohli gestured to KL to throw the corks out of the ground. However, his gestures were misread. On-air commentator, Sanjay Manjrekar quoted, “I think Virat Kohli is saying throw it back to whoever has thrown it to you.”
Racist slurs and chants in the first test: –
A similar incident of crowd misbehavior was reported in the first test as well. This incident wasn’t bought in the eyes of the umpire but a lady took to the website “Reddit” to share her experience. The lady reported the following narrative: –
- 1) Some of the fans were yelling,” Sh***y Shami” and “Wanker Kohli” to both the Indian players.
- 2) When a lady asked the fans to be respectful, the English fans enquired about her nationality. They said, “Go back to India!!”.
- 3) Some of the English fans were referring to fans as “Delta”. This originated from this variant of the coronavirus being tagged as the Indian Variant initially.
- 4) The crowd was constantly having a tussle with Virat, the Indian skipper who consecutively failed to take a successful review.
England and Wales Cricket Board and its measures to stop racism: –
The ECB has always taken a stand against racism. From taking a knee after the “Black Lives Matter” incident to wearing shirts that say “Cricket for all” ECB is always on the forefront. It as an organization works to eradicate racism from sports. However, as such incidents were unreported officially, the ECB is legally unable to follow their established protocols.
