Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) president and former Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara on Monday strongly condemned the racial slurs faced by India pacers Mohammad Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah during the Pink Test and demanded stern action against the offenders. The Indian team on Saturday had lodged an official complaint after the crowd at the Sydney Cricket Ground racially abused pacers Bumrah and Siraj over the second and third day of the Sydney Test. Siraj had to face the brunt of unruly crowds even on the fourth day.
Sangakkara said those responsible for the act should be strongly punished. The former wicket-keeper batsman also said he was very fortunate that he never faced any kind of racial abuse while playing against any team in any country during his career.
"I did read about what happened with the crowd and the Indian team in the last couple of days. Racism in any country in any manner has to be decried and has to be condemned and those responsible should be strongly punished and stern action should be taken against them," said Sangakkara while replying to a query from ANI.
"During my time I was fortunate that I never came across any kind of racial abuse. I can't speak on behalf of other Sri Lankan cricketers but I personally have not been victimised in terms of racial slurs and racial abuse and that's true for every country I have toured," he added.
Last year in June, Sangakkara, who will seen mentoring Team Abu Dhabi in the upcoming T10 league, had voiced his support for the "Black Lives Matter" movement.
The former Sri Lankan skipper had said activism happening in the USA against systemic racism is a lesson for everyone worldwide and added that a state cannot determine the sensibilities of any citizen.
In a series of tweets, Sangakkara had said that the state can never determine the wisdom and compassion of any citizen and he also said that the citizens should choose their representatives more carefully.
"The activism in America against systemic racism and injustice is a powerful lesson to us all. Whichever country we live in, be it America, Sri Lanka, or another, it is not the State that should determine our sensibilities and sensitivities. That's your choice and mine," Sangakkara tweeted.
Meanwhile, the Sydney crowd did not stop on day four of the ongoing Pink Test as Siraj along with skipper Ajinkya Rahane had a word with umpire Paul Reiffel regarding the unruly behaviour of the crowd on Sunday.
Visuals on television indicated that there were some words spoken for Siraj who was fielding near the boundary rope. Both the umpires then had a word with each other and the police then asked a group of men to leave the stand.
The third Test of the four-match series between India and Australia ended as a draw on Monday. Ravichandran Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari batted out 258 balls to help India walk away with a draw and head into the final Test at the Gabba, with the series level at 1-1.