West Indies quick Shannon Gabriel has opened up on his infamous exchange with Joe Root during England’s tour of the Caribbean in 2019 which ultimately resulted in a four-ODI ban for him.
On the third day of the St Lucia Test, the stump mic caught a part of the duo’s interaction, with Root telling Gabriel, “there’s nothing wrong with being gay.” Gabriel was charged with a breach of ICC’s Code of Conduct following the report from on-field umpires Kumar Dharmasena and Rod Tucker.
Ahead of West Indies’ upcoming three-Test series against England, Gabriel has said that the issue last year was “blown way out of proportion”.
Clarifying that he harbours no ill feelings towards Root, the 32-year-old quick added: “No hard feelings. I’ve come here to play cricket and whether it’s Joe or Ben Stokes or whoever, I’m going to do the best of my ability to get them out. It’s not like I target one player.”
Gabriel has been selected as a reserve player for the England tour but could be added to the final squad if he manages to prove his fitness.
