Cricket Australia to investigate Moeen Ali’s ‘Osama’ insult claims
The Australian cricket authorities said they will investigate claims by England all-rounder Moeen Ali, who says he was called “Osama” by an Aussie player during an Ashes test match in 2015.
Moeen, who is Muslim, opened up about the controversial episode in his autobiography, an extract of which was published in Saturday's edition of The Times.
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The player said he had been subjected to a racial slur during his Ashes debut in Cardiff, when an Australian counterpart, who he didn’t name, allegedly compared him to Islamist militant Osama bin Laden.
"An Australian player... turned to me on the field and said, 'Take that, Osama'," Moeen revealed. "I could not believe what I had heard. I remember going really red. I have never been so angry on a cricket field.”
A representative of Cricket Australia said that the body would investigate the claims by Moeen, which were deemed “unacceptable.”
"Remarks of this nature are unacceptable and have no place in our sport, or in society," the official said.
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"We have a clear set of values and behaviors that comes with representing our country. We take this matter very seriously."
