Spectator banned over racist graffiti against Hashim Amla

An Australian spectator received a three-year ban from Cricket Australia after he allegedly wrote racist graffiti aimed at South African batsman Hashim Amla during the ongoing second Test of the three-match series between both sides at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.

The 24-year-old man from Longford was accused of writing an offensive message on the fence, facing crowd, on the opening day of the match. The incident was brought to the attention of authorities at ground who dealt with it immediately.

While the man is banned by the Cricket Australia from any official match across the country, he would also appear before the court after being charged on summons.

"Tasmania Police identified the person of interest through CCTV and witnesses in the area. Cricket Australia has issued the person with a three-year ban from any Cricket Australia match, nationally," a CA spokesperson was quoted as saying by stuff.co.nz.

"Cricket Australia takes a zero-tolerance approach to anti-social behaviour at any of our matches, which includes racial vilification," he added.

Issuing a warning to the fans, the spokesperson said that he or she could face the risk of being banned from any cricket match across Australia as well as police custody if they display anti-social behaviour.

It was not the first time that South African players became victim of the racial comments in Australia.

In the past, former South African speedster Makhaya Ntini had complained about being racially abused by the crowd in Perth.

The Proteas have put in place racial quota for the national team, aiming for six non-white players, including two black Africans.