Michael Holding and Ebony Rainford-Brent deliver powerful Black Lives Matter message ahead of First Test

West Indies legend Michael Holding and former England star Ebony Rainford-Brent have delivered an incredibly powerful message supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, ahead of cricket’s return from the coronavirus shutdown.

The feature, aired on Sky Sports prior to day one of the behind-closed-doors First Test between England and West Indies at the Ageas Bowl, saw both Holding and Rainford-Brent recall experiences of racism from their playing careers and call for change in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and global Black Lives Matter protests.

“If you don’t educate people they’ll keep on growing up in that sort of society and you’ll not get meaningful change,” Holding said.

“Everyone is recognising it, everyone is now coming alive and seeing the difference in treatment of people. We’re all human beings so I hope that people recognise that this black lives movement is not trying to get black people above white people or above anyone else. It’s all about equality.

“When you say to somebody, ‘black lives matter’ and they tell you ‘white lives matter’ or ‘all lives matter’ - please, we black people know that white lives matter. I don’t think you know that black lives matter, so don’t shout back at us that all lives matter.

“It is obvious, the evidence is clearly there that white lives matter. We want black lives to matter now, simple as that.”

An emotional Rainford-Brent, who was the first black woman to ever play for England and won the World Cup in 2009, told of how, growing up in London, she had felt part of a multi-cultural community, only to find cricket a less welcoming environment.

“I noticed as soon as I walked into the world of cricket, comments started,” she said. “I had comments about where I grew up, the fact that I had a long name, maybe my mum didn’t know who my dad was. About my hair, body parts.

“Did I wish my skin? Everyone in my area getting stabbed.

“I’ve been in team environments dealing constantly with people referring to ‘your lot’. I’m not surprised that people coming into the environment don’t want to deal with it, I questioned myself sometimes why I stayed so long.”

Holding, meanwhile, recalled suffering racist abuse while fielding on the boundary during tours to Australia and England during the 1970s and 1980s.

The fast-bowler was part of the West Indies side that toured England in 1984 and beat the hosts 5-0, and feat not repeated by any team before or since, and nicknamed the ‘Blackwash’ by West Indian fans.

“The blackwash series was my third tour to England and I can understand totally why they called it blackwash,” Holding said. “When I started to tour England more regularly and got to meet the West Indians who lived here and understand what they went through and what it meant for us to win.

“I can totally understand them saying: ‘What is this whitewash thing? Why has everything good got to be white? We’re going to call this blackwash’.”

Players from both teams will wear a Black Lives Matter logo on their kits during the three-match series, which is being held at bio-secure venues because of the coronavirus pandemic.