Former England cricket player and BBC announcer Isa Guha became involved in a racial scandal when, while working for Fox Sports in Australia, he called Indian cricket player Jasprit Bumrah a "primate."Working as a cricket analyst and presenter for the BBC's coverage of the Olympics and Wimbledon, Guha made the comment during the opening session of day two of the second Test match between Australia and India in Brisbane. It occurred during a live discussion with Brett Lee and Allan Border, two other commentators. “Today, Bumrah: five overs, 2-4,” Lee stated. Thus, you want the ex-skipper to have that tone.Guha responded by saying: “Well, he’s the MVP, isn’t he? Most valuable primate, Jasprit Bumrah. He is the one that’s going to do all the talking for India, and why so much focus was on him in the build-up to this Test match, and whether he would be fit.”

A spokesman for the Indian team said that they did not hear the remark and would not speak to Bumrah before the end of play.The comment has sparked controversy in India with newspaper the Times of India comparing it to the “monkeygate” scandal of 2008 when Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh was accused of calling Andrew Symonds a “monkey.”

Guha’s parents are from Kolkata and she is one of the most prominent British Asian presenters in sport.She is a lead presenter of the BBC’s cricket on television and has also worked on the corporation’s Wimbledon coverage as well as their programmes from the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Guha has worked extensively in Australia for Fox Sports alongside former England captain Michael Vaughan with both commentating on the current Australia-India series.

Guha is now under pressure to clear the matter up after a backlash to the comment.