Ollie Robinson’s suspension is ludicrous

At six-foot-five-inches tall, Ollie Robinson is a fast bowler any cricket team would be proud to have in their side. The 27 year-old’s ability to swing the ball coupled with pinpoint accuracy soon got the attention of the England selectors. The Sussex bowler was recently called up to play his first test against New Zealand. He did well – taking seven wickets for 101 runs with the ball and a decent-looking 42 with the willow.

Yet as any fellow England cricket fan will tell you, disappointment is never far away. With Saturday’s play lost to rain, England was set an ambitious but achievable total. Rather than go for the win, the team dug in and ground out an uninspiring draw.

But the headlines focused less on the debutant’s promising performance and more on the personal drama unfolding off the field. Just hours after their less than impressive draw, it was revealed that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) had suspended Robinson from all forms of International cricket. As such he will miss the second test which begins on Thursday. 

So what was his crime?

It came to light, during the first test, that Robinson had posted a number of “offensive” comments and messages on social media. Robinson’s career now hangs in the balance pending an inquiry by the ECB. The cricketing board has launched an investigation into the bowler who is accused of writing “historical racist and sexist tweets.”

It turns out that these tweets first appeared on social media in 2012/13 – when he was a teenager. I have seen the messages. They amount to little more than a tasteless, infantile collection of comments about Muslims and women that a two-bit stand-up comedian might reel out at a local open mic night. Sure, he won’t be hired by Stonewall or win a diversity and inclusion award, but that was enough to get the usual crowd of perpetually offended PC babies hitting the print screen option on their laptop. 

What has happened to Robinson is an example of what writer Freddie De Boer calls “offence archaeology” – the process whereby someone trawls through a celebrity’s past life with the intention of unearthing and displaying incriminating evidence of “problematic” comments and potentially career-ending misdeeds. Usually politically motivated, the process is reminiscent of the show trials used by the old Soviet Union to remove Stalin’s enemies from public life. 

Michael Vaughan, former England captain turned TV pundit, told BBC Sport: “He has got to go away, learn and educate himself – and become a better person for it.” But that’s the point. When it comes to the patronising, progressive cliché of “educating” oneself – he already has. Robinson made these comments when he was 18. He is now 27. Can anyone reading this honestly admit to having never said or done anything at that age they later regret? I know I can’t.

We really need to learn to stop overreacting to situations like this. Unfortunately, as more and more institutions inculcate a worldview built around identity politics I foresee more, not fewer, cases like Robinson’s hitting the headlines. North of the border, a woman is facing two years in prison for a similar crime of tweeting something she sent years ago. Marion Millar stands accused of transphobia and homophobia. Millar, 50, is an active voice against both gender self-identification and the authoritarian and censorious Scottish Hate Crime Bill. Whilst what she said was unclear – the evidence is yet to be conclusive – it does not, nor ever would, necessitate a prosecution.

At best, Robinson’s case should have been dismissed and filed under the category of “stupid things teenagers say”. At worst, it should have been dealt with internally. But we live in an age when everyone appears to be falling over themselves to prove they are not racist. Such is the case with the ECB. With the need to signal as much virtue as possible, the Board’s intervention may sound the death knell for this promising young cricketer. 

What’s more, this all comes at a crossroads for the England cricket team. With Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson both rapidly approaching retirement, the need to blood young new talent is crucial to the team’s development. Judging by Robinson’s figures with both ball and bat, he is an exciting prospect for a team slowly losing world-class bowlers. 

Unfortunately, we live in a world where nothing is forgiven. Should Robinson be allowed back into the England team, his critics will not let him forget and move on from what is an overreaction to an overblown incident, magnified by the media which has already acquiesced to Black Lives Matter. 

The ECB needs to see sense, admit it made a mistake and allow him back. No crime has been committed. Offence can only be taken, not given. During a press interview he struck a conciliatory and contrite tone. Not only has Robinson apologised, he also appears extremely embarrassed and ashamed about the whole affair.

Isn’t that enough?