Former New Zealand cricketer Ross Taylor has revealed about racism in New Zealand cricket in his biography. In his biography titled ‘Ross Taylor Black and White’, Taylor said that cricket in New Zealand is a clean game. However, he experienced racism inside the dressing room. The former veteran said that there he was called ‘butter’.
Taylor said, ‘Cricket is considered a good game in New Zealand. I have been a different player for most of my career. This former batter further said, ‘People would say it was all a joke. If it doesn’t do any harm, then why are you unnecessarily giving importance to them? It is better that you make your own skin thick. Let the chips fall where they may. But is it the right thing to do?’
Indians believed me
In an excerpt from a biography published in a New Zealand newspaper, Taylor wrote: “Noting that the Polynesian community is under-represented in sport. It is perhaps no surprise that people sometimes assume that I am a Maori or an Indian. A teammate once told me Ross, you’re a half-good guy, but who’s half-good? You don’t know this. Even though I understood what they were saying. Some other players in the team also faced such racial remarks.
‘Dirty words’ on bad shot
Taylor said that New Zealand is dominated by white players. He said, ‘There used to be times when I used to play a bad shot, very dirty words were used about it. However, the same type of shot was not said to the rest of the team’s batsmen. Abusive words were used for me for playing a bad shot, whereas if someone else played the same shot, it was called bad shot selection.
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