Following Gorge Floyd's, a 46-year-old black man, killing in Minneapolis during police custody former West Indies cricket team captain Darren Sammy urged cricket world to stand up against racism. Furious Sammy also requested ICC and other cricket boards to speak against racism and join the Black Lives Matter campaign. The cricketer then stoked controversy when he alleged racism in Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) camp in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Sammy claimed that he was subjected to a racial slur, 'Kalu' and not just him, Sri Lankan all-rounder Sri Lanka's Thisara Perera also had to face the racial discrimination. Irfan Pathan and Other Former SRH Players ‘Not Sure’ of Darren Sammy’s Racial Slur Allegations During IPL.
Screenshots of Sammy's Instagram stories went viral in which the cricketer claimed he now "learnt what that 'Kalu' meant" and said he thought it meant "strong Stallion."
Subsequently, Sammy uploaded a video on his Instagram and further alleged racism within the SRH franchise. In the video, the two-time T20 World Cup-winning captain said how he came to know about the actual meaning of word 'Kalu' which was used for him in the IPL. Sammy added, "now, I realise it was degrading, I will be texting you guys, and I will ask you as to when you called me with that name, did you all mean it in any bad way or form?" Irfan Pathan Claims ‘Brothers From South India’ Face Racial Taunts During Domestic Matches.
Furious Darren Sammy's Tweets
Right now if the cricket world not standing against the injustice against people of color after seeing that last video of that foot down the next of my brother you are also part of the problem.
— Daren Sammy (@darensammy88) June 1, 2020
. @ICC and all the other boards are you guys not seeing what’s happening to ppl like me? Are you not gonna speak against the social injustice against my kind. This is not only about America. This happens everyday #BlackLivesMatter now is not the time to be silent. I wanna hear u
— Daren Sammy (@darensammy88) June 2, 2020
Screenshots of Sammy Instagram Stories
Legendary Cricketer Darren Sammy who is TWO TIME WORLD T20 CHAMPION has accused Sunrisers Hyd IPL team of being racist towards him and thisara perera.
His latest Instagram story shows all.
Its a really stat of affair at IPL regarding such racist comments. Shame. pic.twitter.com/xzoWdFK1jJ
— Aqeel (@AqeelViews) June 6, 2020
Here's the Video Sammy Uploaded Recently
What added further fuel to Sammy's claims was an old Instagram post by Ishant Sharma in 2014 which has now surfaced. In the photo, Ishant can be seen with Sunrisers' teammates Sammy, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Dale Steyn. "Me, bhuvi, kaluu and gun sunrisers," Ishant had captioned the Instagram post.
Here's Ishant's Old Instagram Post
Sammy's old tweet also surfaced wherein the Windies cricketer uses the word to refer to himself.
Happy birthday @VVSLaxman281 May God continue to bless you. #bestdresser oh remember dark kalu. 😂😂😂
— Daren Sammy (@darensammy88) November 1, 2014
Whether Sammy was intentionally referred to as 'Kalu' or not is something that is not clear yet. As of now, neither the players nor the franchise has spoken against the allegations made by Sammy.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 09, 2020 09:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).