English commentator Isa Guha has apologised for referring to Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah as a ‘primate’ while speaking about his bowling skills during the second day’s play of the ongoing third Test match between India and Australia.
Bumrah was the only challenge that Australian batsmen faced on their way to scoring 445 runs in their first innings. The 31-year-old picked up six wickets while the rest of the Indian bowlers struggled to pose any significant threat to the Aussie batters.
Describing his performance, Guha, a former international cricketer from England, called him the ‘Most Valuable Primate’.
The comment, however, did not go down well with Bumrah’s fans with many of them criticising her on social media for the comment.
Meanwhile, Guha addressed the issue during the third day’s coverage of the match and apologised for any offence she caused by using the word.
Isa Guha said she only used the word to praise Jasprit Bumrah highly.
“I set myself really high standards when it comes to empathy and respect of others and if you listen to the full transcript, I only meant the highest praise for one of India’s greatest players and someone that I admire greatly as well,” she was quoted as saying by Fox Sports.
Isa Guha admitted she chose to use the wrong word.
“I’m trying to frame the enormity of his achievements and I’ve chosen the wrong word, and for that I am deeply sorry,” the commentator said.
“As someone who is also of South-Asian heritage I hope people would recognise that there was no other intention or malice there,” she said.
Commentator Ravi Shastri, who was present on the live broadcast with Isa Guha, praised her and called her a ‘brave woman’.
He said: “To apologise on live television takes some steel. You heard it from the horse’s mouth so as far as I am concerned, game’s over. People are entitled to make mistakes, we are all human.”
This holds significance since India and Australia have already witnessed a similar episode, involving players Harbhajan Singh and the late Andrew Symonds. Now infamous as the Monkeygate Scandal, it hit the headlines during the 2007-08 Border Gavaskar Trophy down under.
As per reports, Indian off-spinner Singh had allegedly called Symonds a ‘monkey’. Though the Indian cricketer repeatedly refuted the allegation, saying he said “Maa ki”, a common northern Indian slang, officials found Singh guilty of racially abusing the Aussie cricketer and handed him a suspension. Though the two cricketers reconciled after that, featuring for Mumbai Indians in the franchise-based Indian Premier League together, the incident left a dent, and Guha’s remark reminded many about it.
