Aussies taunt Tahir
AUCKLAND: The South African team management have dismissed any suggestion that leg-spinner Imran Tahir was “racially” abused during the previous Cricket World Cup encounter against Ireland at the Manuka Oval in Canberra.
Tahir, one of the leading wicket-takers in the tournament with nine scalps, was fielding on the boundary during Ireland’s pursuit of South Africa’s 411/4 on Tuesday when a spectator started heckling the Pakistan-born bowler.
Although media reports in Australia have indicated that Tahir, who wears a thick beard, was told “Why don’t you go stroke your pet camel?”, the Proteas have denied this and stressed that the heckling was not derogatory or racially motivated.
“Imran Tahir was taunted on the boundary from members of the crowd and reported the suspect to our security manager, Zunaid Wadee, who warned and reprimanded the suspect. It is not clear what was said but none of it was racial or derogatory,” Proteas team manager Mohammed Moosajee told The Star.
“The same suspect, along with his friend, was then involved in another incident involving Kyle Abbott later on in the innings. They were subsequently evicted from the stadium by the ICC security team, who have since taken over the issue.”
The Proteas have previously experienced racial abuse in Australia back in 2006 when several players were branded “k*****s” and “k***** brothers” by sections of the WACA crowd during a Test match in Perth. At the time, former South African cricket boss Dr Ali Bacher called on the ICC to hand out life bans to the alleged perpetrators.
See Sport