MYSTERY surrounds the second England cricketer caught up in a racism storm.
Ollie Robinson was suspended from all international cricket on Sunday while an investigation into racist and sexist tweets from 2012 and 2013 takes place.
He could be replaced in the squad by Craig Overton, who in 2015 was reported for telling former Sussex batsman Ashar Zaidi to ‘go back to your own f****** country’.
Overton was cleared of using racist language but found guilty of abusive language. He has since played four Tests.
But on Monday night, news of another player’s previous social media comments broke.
Who is the second England cricketer?
It is not yet known who the second player is.
The ECB have not revealed his identity at this stage.
What did the second player say in his tweet?
The player is believed to have written ‘#ch**ky’ on Twitter.
He was under the age of 16 at the time it was posted.
His tweet was dug up by Wisden.com on Monday.
What have the ECB said in response?
The ECB made a comment on the incident on Monday evening.
An England spokesperson said: “It has been brought to our attention that an England player has posted historic offensive material on their social media account.
“We are looking into it and will make a further comment in due course.”
What did Ollie Robinson say in his tweets?
Robinson posted a series of revolting tweets at the age of 18, which resurfaced on his first day as an England player on Wednesday, June 2.
In 2012, Robinson tweeted using the n-word and another post said: “My new muslim friend is the bomb #wheeyyyyy.”
There were also sexist comments about ‘females who play video games actually tend to have more sex’.
He has been suspended until the conclusion of the investigation.
What did Ollie Robinson say in his apology?
Robinson, 27, faces disciplinary action after being forced to apologise.
He insisted he did not realise the posts were still on his timeline, but reiterated he is not ‘racist or sexist‘.
Part of the length apology said: “On the biggest day of my career so far, I am embarrassed by the racist and sexist tweets that I posted over eight years ago which have today become public.
“I want to make it clear that I’m not racist and I’m not sexist. I deeply regret my actions and I am ashamed of making such remarks.”
What did Boris Johnson say after Robinson was banned?
The PM stated the Robinson ban is ‘over the top’ and backed Cabinet minister Oliver Downden’s calls for the all-rounder to be reinstated.
Wading into the row today, Mr Dowden said: “Ollie Robinson’s tweets were offensive and wrong. They are also a decade old and written by a teenager.
“The teenager is now a man and has rightly apologised. The ECB has gone over the top by suspending him and should think again.”
Boris Johnson backed his calls for a rethink.
His spokesman said: ‘The PM is supportive of comments from Oliver Dowden that he made via tweet this morning.
“These were comments made more than a decade ago, written by someone as a teenager, and for which they rightly apologise.”
