Windies vs England | Pacer Shannon Gabriel warned over alleged homophobic remarks by Joe Root
Windiesâ pacer Shannon Gabriel was caught being warned by England batsman Joe Root for his alleged homophobic rant on the on-field stump mic. Root was heard saying âthere is nothing wrong with being gayâ in reply to an inaudible taunt made by Gabriel during the final Test match of the series.
The West Indies cricket team, led by Jason Holder, have clearly been the better side against tourists England in the ongoing Test series on home soil. The hosts have won the three-match Test series after taking a 2-0 lead but are on the losing side in the ongoing third and final Test of the series.
However, Windies pacer Shannon Gabriel has got himself in trouble after he was caught on the stump microphone directing homophobic rants towards Englandâs Joe Root. The English batsman was in no mood to take those comments silently as he hit back at the towering bowler saying, âthere is nothing wrong with being gay, donât use it as an insult.â
Gabrielâs initial remarks werenât aired on live television but the quick bowler was spoken to by umpires Kumar Dharmasena and Rod Tucker about his conduct. However, it is believed the umpires didnât hear anything that would breach the ICC Code of Conduct. At a post-match interview, Root suggested that Gabriel may have said something he âmight regretâ but did not go into the specifics of the incident.
âSometimes people say things on the field that they might regret, but they should stay on the field. Heâs a good guy who plays hard cricket and is proud to be in the position he is. The battle was a good contest. Heâs had a wonderful series and he should be proud. I donât want anything said in the middle to ruin whatâs been a good Test series for him and his team,â Root said.
Meanwhile, home team coach Richard Pybus revealed that he wasnât aware of the incident, but indicated that he would take strict action if his player was at fault.
âNothing has been reported to me but if a comment was made we will review it. If it was untoward we will be addressing it,â Pybus said.
Great work from Joe Root here. Difficult in the middle of a Test match to stand up for whatâs right, but did it anyway đ đ pic.twitter.com/5ZyHxkRNdQ
â Ryan Shahin (@ryan_shahin) February 12, 2019