England cricketer Alex Hales apologises for ‘disrespectful’ black make-up photo at 2009 party

English cricketer Alex Hales on Friday apologised for appearing in blackface at a party in 2009, branding his behaviour “reckless and foolish”.

The Sun newspaper published the image on Thursday and said it had been taken at a New Year’s Eve party in 2009, following explosive testimony by the Yorkshire whistleblower Azeem Rafiq.

Hales said he had gone to a fancy dress party in 2009 as US rapper Tupac Shakur because he “is, was, always will be my favourite musician”.

“The theme was musicians and Tupac is, was and always will be my favourite musician, so I went (dressed) like him,” Hales said in a video.

“I want to apologise to the club for the embarrassment it would have caused and I guess my 20s were full of mistakes like that,” Hales said.

“Reckless mistakes off the field let down family, teammates, friends and close relationships I had during my 20s. And I guess some of these decisions I will regret for the rest of my life.”

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said it will investigate the matter.

“We have procedures in place to address conduct and allegations of this nature and we will investigate accordingly. We want cricket to be an inclusive, welcoming game for everyone.”

Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club, for whom Hales plays, also said the batsman would be subjected to the club’s disciplinary process.

On Wednesday, Hales denied there was “any racial connotation” in the name of his dog Kevin after allegations by Rafiq.

” The last few years, being away from the spotlight a little bit has given me a chance to better myself as a human…

“With regards to the allegations about the dog… I want to reiterate what I said in my statement the other day. And finally, I deplore all forms of racism and discrimination,” Hales added.