Geoffrey Boycott apologises on Twitter for his racist comments

Former English cricketer Geoffrey Boycott is not a complete stranger to controversy. Intentionally or unintentionally, Boycott has often been involved in various controversies, with the latest being born on Saturday. During a break in the D/N Test match between England and Windies at Edgbaston, Boycott was attending a VIP audience. In the Q & A session, Boycott stated that knighthoods were given like confetti to Windian cricketers and he should have had better chances of getting knighted only if he was black.

“Mine’s been turned down twice. I’d better black my face,” said the 76-year old, with the hope of getting some claps and laughter. But what followed was not expected by Boycott, as the audience was disgusted at the ‘racist’ comment from Boycott. “It was a crass comment. It was intended to get a laugh but it went down like a leaked balloon. People were offended. We can do without dinosaurs like him spouting rubbish.” said a spectator while speaking to Mirror.

The VIPs, who paid £300 to attend the special event at Edgbaston in Birmingham, were way too offended with Boycott’s claims that it is easier to get knighted if one is a Windian, or actually a “black”. A total of 11 Windian legends of the game have been knighted till now, which includes some of the best players the game has ever seen, like Sir Vivian Richards, Sir Curtly Ambrose and Sir Garfield Sobers.

Three tweets to settle the matter

Seeing the recent outburst of anger among the people, Boycott decided to apologize for his statement publicly. He did with three tweets, which say “Speaking at an informal gathering I was asked a question and I realise my answer was unacceptable. I meant no offence but what I said was clearly wrong and I apologise unreservedly. I have loved West Indian cricket my whole life and have the utmost respect for its players.”