Nasser Hussain Deserves A Ban

 The one-off T20 between India and England at Old Trafford will be remembered more for Nasser Hussain’s ‘donkey’ remark rather than for on-field events. I was watching the match when Hussain spoke the D word and I was kind of surprised. I knew straightaway that this will turn into a controversy though I would like to believe that Hussain did not intend to hurt anyone or be racist. It was just an attempt of a commentator to be creative, to be different. But in doing so, he made a big mistake because the word ‘donkey’ is used for someone who is dumb. Also, it is used as a form of abuse. In short, it is considered to be a highly derogatory word. A donkey is a dull, sluggish, brainless animal and to compare it to some of the Indian fielders was too much.

So whether it was really an attempt at hurting Indian sentiments or not does not matter at all while considering if he should be banned. There have been instances in the past when commentators were banned for some similar things. The most prominent example is of Dean Jones who called South African batsman, Hashim Amla, a ‘terrorist’ because of his long beard. Everyone knows he didn’t mean it. He was just trying to be humorous. But, unintentionally, he hurt the sentiments of the Muslims and had to pay the price even after being apologetic about it. He was banned for life from commentating.

Now it all depends on how rigorously the BCCI pursues it. Though I am not a fan of BCCI’s arm-twisting tactics I want them to do whatever they can to get Hussain banned. An apology would be insufficient. If Dean Jones deserved a ban so does Hussain.