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Senior India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin feels sorry for England pacer Ollie Robinson, who has been suspended for racist and sexist tweets posted back in 2012, and has called his punishment 'a strong indication of what the future holds in this social media generation'.
Robinson, who made his England debut in the first Test against New Zealand which ended in a draw on Sunday, was suspended from international cricket pending an investigation after his tweets, posted when he was a teenager, resurfaced on the opening day of the match at Lord's in London.
"I can understand the negative sentiments towards what #OllieRobinson did years ago, but I do feel genuinely sorry for him being suspended after an impressive start to his Test career," Ashwin said on his Twitter handle.
"This suspension is a strong indication of what the future holds in this social media Gen."
Robinson took seven wickets in the match and also hit 42 in England's first innings.
But he will not be available for selection for the second Test starting at Edgbaston on Thursday. He will leave the England camp immediately and return to his county, Sussex.
The 27-year-old issued an apology on Wednesday, admitting to posting 'racist and sexist tweets' as a teenager. He had expressed 'deep regrets' about his actions while stating "I'm not racist and I'm not sexist."
Former India Test opener Wasim Jaffer responded to Ashwin's tweet with a cheeky post.
"I am just glad I found Twitter after I retired," Jaffer tweeted.
Batting coach Graham Thorpe has said that going ahead, England could start reviewing the social media history of the players before their selection in the national team.
Robinson's offensive tweets targetted Muslims and Asians and he has said he is 'ashamed' of them.
The screenshots of his posts resurfaced on numerous social media platforms after lunch interval on Day 1 of the first Test between England and New Zealand at Lord's.
ECB went 'over the top' by suspending Robinson, says UK minister
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) went 'over the top' by suspending fast bowler Ollie Robinson from all international cricket for racist and sexist comments he made on Twitter in the past, UK culture minister Oliver Dowden said on Monday.
Robinson apologised 'unreservedly' for Twitter posts he made from 2012-2013 that went viral on social media last week when he made his test debut against New Zealand at Lord's.
The ECB on Sunday suspended the 27-year-old pending the outcome of a disciplinary investigation into the incident.
"Ollie Robinson's tweets were offensive and wrong," Dowden tweeted.
"They are also a decade old and written by a teenager. The teenager is now a man and has rightly apologised."
"The ECB has gone over the top by suspending him and should think again."
England captain Joe Root said after the first drawn Test against New Zealand that Robinson had some lessons to learn.
"It's not acceptable within our game - we all know that," Root said. "He has dealt with a huge array of emotions over this last week and he has got to learn some hard lessons."
"He addressed the dressing room, and media outlets, straight away, he fronted up to it. He showed a lot of remorse from that point onwards."