England pacer Ollie Robinson has found support from one of his ex-teammates at Yorkshire, who has defended him for his controversial old tweets and stated that he is not a ‘racist’. Robinson, who made his Test debut for England, in the first Test against New Zealand at the Lord’s Cricket Ground on Wednesday, was slammed by many after some of his old tweets resurfaced. 

The tweets written by Robinson over 8 years ago were termed ‘racist’ and ‘sexist’ by many as the England pacer’s impressive debut was overshadowed by allegations of racism. He picked up two wickets as New Zealand scored 280/3 on Day at Lord’s. However, little did Robinson knew his debut will soon turn into a forgetful one after he found himself in the eye of a social media storm over his old posts.

While Robinson has apologised for his derogatory tweets, the England Cricket Board (ECB) has launched an investigation into the matter. Robinson’s ex-teammate from Yorkshire – Ashraf has come out in his support. Ashraf, who claimed to have shared a room with Robinson during his time at the club, said the pacer was not a racist and should be forgiven for his old tweets.

As an ex teammate of Ollie Robinson’s in the Yorkshire set up, having roomed, shared the field and gone out for dinners and socials with him, I know full well he isn’t a racist. Yes, the remarks were inexcusable and irresponsible. He’s apologised. We should forgive, and move on,” Ashraf wrote in a tweet

Robinson tendered an apology soon after the conclusion of Day 1’s play at Lord’s and said he embarrassed by the racist and sexist tweets that he posted as a teenager. 

“On the biggest day of my career so far, I am embarrassed by the racist and sexist tweets that I posted over eight years ago, which have today become public. I want to make it clear that I’m not racist and I’m not sexist,” Robinson said in a statement released by ECB.

The 27-year-old has 273 wickets to his name in 63 First-Class matches and is seen as a future prospect for England in Tests.