Sports
IND vs NZ: Spectators ejected for abusing New Zealand players
Two spectators were ejected from the Ageas Bowl on the fifth day of the World Test Championship (WTC) final for hurling racist abuse at players of New Zealand team.
As per details, a complaint was made by a New Zealand fan who was watching the Test match on TV and heard racist comments directed towards batsman Ross Taylor.
Ross is a former New Zealand captain and the first player to play over 100 international matches all three formats.
The council came to know that the fans were in Block M, which was just below the on-site hotel where both teams are staying.
There have been up to 4000 fans allowed in each day for India vs New Zealand.
An International Cricket Council (ICC) spokesperson said,“We received reports of abuse directed at the New Zealand players”.
“We will not tolerate any sort of abusive behaviour in cricket," said ICC in a media statement.
The statement further added, “Our security team was able to identify the culprits and they were ejected from the ground”.
It is not the first time that that spectators have been ejected from the stadium during a Test match for racial abuse. As the first incident was occurred in the New Year’s Test match at Sydney Cricket Ground between India and Australia where Indian pacer, Mohammed Siraj reported authorities about receiving racial abuse from the crowd.
However, the group of spectators were immediately removed from the stadium.
New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee said that he was not aware of the incident.
"The game is always played in a good spirit on the field. We're not sure obviously what's happening off the field,” he said.