New Zealand vs England 2019: Claims of racial abuse by Jofra Archer; investigation underway as NZC issue apology
England fast bowler Jofra Archer has claimed that he was subjected to racial abuse on the last day of the first Test in Mount Maunganui. Archer took to twitter to come out with serious allegations of racial abuse from an anonymous member of the crowd after getting out to Trent Boult.
Archer came in to bat late on day five in an attempt to save England the blushes of losing the match by an innings margin. He scored 30 runs and shared a fruitful 50-run partnership with all-rounder Sam Curran but England ended up losing the Test by an innings and 65 runs.
A statement was released by The England and Wales Cricket Board regarding the alleged incident stating that the investigation is being conducted by both the ECB and New Zealand Cricket. The statement read:
“The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) supported by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) are conducting an investigation into racial abused aimed towards England cricketer Jofra Archer during day five of the first Test match in Mount Maunganui."
"The incident took place after Archer was dismissed and was walking off the field to the pavilion. Through the scrutiny of CCTV footage at Bay Oval, authorities are trying to identify the individual or individuals responsible for the remarks. The investigation is ongoing.”
"NZC and ECB ensure that clear guidelines are in place at every venue so that watching a cricket match is safe and enjoyable for everyone. Whist this is a relatively isolated incident there is absolutely no place for anti-social or racist behaviour within the game and it is vitally important that all spectators feel able to come forward and report such behaviour and feel safe in doing so."
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The Twitter handle of NZC issued an immediate apology and vowed to take the unacceptable and shocking issues of racial abuse seriously.
England all-rounder Ben Stokes also expressed his anger on Twitter regarding the issue.