Former West Indies cricketer Darren Sammy recently spoke up on the racism prevalent in cricket, admitting that he was called “kalu” during his stint with the Indian Premier League team Sunrisers Hyderabad. However, ex-teammates and other players have denied knowledge of such discrimination against the T20 World Cup-winning captain.
Sammy, who played with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2013 and 2014, alleged that he and Sri Lankan cricketer Thisara Perera were called “kalu”, the meaning of which he thought was “a strong black man”. However, he came to know what the word really meant after watching the latest episode of Hasan Minhaj’s The Patriot Act, in which the comedian calls out Indians for discriminating against Black people.
His former teammates, however, have said that they were unaware of such a practice in the IPL.
“I don’t think I have heard anyone using those words,” India and current Royal Challengers Bangalore player Parthiv Patel said.
Former SRH player and Andhra Cricket Association Director Y. Venugopal Rao said that he was not sure of it and was unaware if it had happened.
Irfan Pathan, however, admitted that such incidents were not uncommon in cricket. While saying he was also unaware of what Sammy alleged, he said it would have been discussed had it happened.
“I was there with him in 2014. I feel had this really happened, the matter would definitely have been discussed. So I’m not aware of such things as nothing was discussed in a larger way.
“But at the same time, we need to educate our people because I’ve seen them (using racial slurs) in domestic cricket.”
Pathan added that cricketers from south India have faced such discrimination in the northern and western parts of the country.
“What happens is among the crowd, someone tries to act like a jester. It’s not because people are racist, but it’s like someone trying to be popular by saying something seemingly funny that amounts to crossing the line on certain occasions,” Pathan said.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India has claimed that it has never received any complaints from anyone for discrimination. A BCCI official quoted by media said that Sammy should have reported the incident when it happened, although the West Indies cricketer only to know the meaning of the word recently.
The debate on racism in sports was reopened after protests erupted in the US after the killing of African American George Floyd when a white police officer knelt on his neck for several minutes as Floyd gasped for breath. The protests have put the spotlight back on police brutality and the systemic oppression against Black people around the world.
(With inputs from agencies)
