England captain and Yorkshire player, Joe Root, has invited big Windies fast-bowler Shannon Gabriel to come and play with his team in the English County Championships.
It is understood that while Gabriel, Root and Ben Stokes were having a beer in the dressing room after the match on Tuesday, Root invited Gabriel to join him as a player with his club. Gabriel gave no commitment because he is expected to be involved in the Cricket World Cup which bowls off on May 30 and ends on July 14 in England.
The two players were embroiled in an on-field banter on day three of the third and final Test match of the Wisden series in St Lucia, which resulted in Gabriel being banned for four matches in the upcoming Limited overs series which bowls off on Wednesday at the Kenginston Oval in Barbados.
Gabriel's sanction which included a fine of 75 per cent of his match fee came about after he said to Joe Root: "Why are you smiling at me? Do you like boys?"
Root's response was picked up by the microphone in which he responded: "Don’t use it as an insult. There’s nothing wrong with being gay." Gabriel immediate response was: "I have no issues with that, but you should stop smiling at me.'” “There is nothing wrong with being gay.”
On Thursday, Gabriel sent out an apology over the incident saying: “To my teammates and members of the England team, especially their captain Joe Root, I extend an unreserved apology for a comment which in the context of on-the-field rivalry, I assumed was inoffensive picong and sporting banter. I know now that it was offensive and for that, I am deeply sorry.”
Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of 18 First-Class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Yorkshire. The club's limited overs team is called the Yorkshire Vikings and is the most successful team in English cricketing history with 33 County Championship titles, including one shared. The team's most recent Championship title was in 2015, following on from that achieved in 2014.