West Indies’ lionhearted skipper Jason Holder, has demanded equal sanctions for racism charges, as to that which is presently for match-fixing and doping violations.
During an ODI series between South Africa and Pakistan, all-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo was subjected to racists remarks from visiting captain Sarfraz Ahmed. Then, the wicketkeeper-batsman was slapped a four-match ban last year.
Further, Darren Sammy was recently on revelation-spree after finding out that his teammates during his stint at Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), used racist jibes.
Shortly after Sammy’s rant on social media, the likes of Kumar Sangakkara, Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo stood in solidarity with the former all-rounder.
Gayle even took part in the ‘Black Lives Matter’ campaign, giving weight by sharing their experiences subjected to racial abuse.
The world currently is facing waves of protests against ‘White Supremacy’, using the hashtag, ‘BlackLivesMatter’.
“I don’t think the penalty for doping or corruption should be any different for racism. If we’ve got issues within our sport, we must deal with them equally,” BBC quoted Holder.
As of now, under the anti-racism code of the apex cricketing body, International Cricket Council (ICC), a third breach of the code by a player could lead to a life ban.
A ban for four tests or eight limited-overs matches dictates the sanction for a first offence by a player.
“In addition to having anti-doping briefings and anti-corruption briefings, maybe we should have an anti-racism feature before we start a series. My message is that more education needs to go around it,” Holder added.
Holder even conceded that he did not face any kind of racial abuse, but has second-hand experiences.
“I’ve not experienced any racial abuse first hand but have heard or seen a few things around it. It’s something you just can’t stand for,” the all-rounder said.
