Culture secretary makes intervention in
Cricket rowEngland head coach says impossible to dismiss tweetsThe sports minister, Oliver Dowden, has accused the ECB of going “over the top” by suspending the bowler Ollie Robinson from international cricket while they conduct an investigation into historic offensive tweets published in 2012 and 2013.
Robinson excelled on debut in England’s first Test against
New Zealand, which ended in a draw on Sunday, taking seven wickets and scoring 42 in the first innings, a total bettered only by the centurion Rory Burns. His performance was all the more impressive for having been played out to a soundtrack of scandal and controversy as a result of the tweets, which were rediscovered and widely distributed as play progressed on the opening day. His suspension was announced on Sunday night, ruling him out of the second match which starts in Birmingham on Thursday, and potentially beyond.