Racism in English Cricket: Lifting the Lid on Recent Events at Yorkshire County Cricket Club

Members of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Select Committee of the House of Commons listened intently for just under two hours on 16 November 2021, as an emotional Azeem Rafiq spoke at the Wilson Room in Portcullis House, London, about his unpleasant time at Yorkshire County Cricket Club (CCC). Later, on that same day, the committee members also heard from Roger Hutton, until recently chairman of Yorkshire CCC, and Tom Harrison, chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

 Rafiq, an all-rounder, once served as England Under-19s captain and also played on two separate occasions for Yorkshire CCC, from 2008 to 2014 and again between 2016 and 2018. Born in Pakistan, he first arrived in England at the age of ten and began his involvement with cricket a year later. He first publicised his unhappiness with the world of cricket during an interview with ESPN on 2 September 2020, when he alleged “institutional racism” at Yorkshire CCC. The following day, Roger Hutton confirmed a formal investigation into Rafiq’s allegations. By 5 September, global law firm Squire Patton Boggs, for whom Hutton had once worked as an article clerk, had been chosen to conduct this investigation. The club received the full report of the investigation in August 2021 and then released its own summary on 10 September, in which it upheld seven of 43 allegations and accepted that Rafiq had been subjected to “racial harassment and bullying” while stopping short of accepting the existence of “institutional racism”. The original unabridged report subsequently made its way to the DCMS Select Committee on 10 November, shortly before the hearing.

Rafiq’s testimony named names and provided examples of offensive remarks, racial stereotyping, an insensitive drinking culture, and hurtful ostracism, most of which appear to have no direct bearing upon the game of cricket and instead have more to do with prevailing attitudes within the wider communities of origin of those responsible.  The West Riding of Yorkshire in particular is known for towns that are segregated along racial and religious lines, where there seems to be an undercurrent of tensions between the different communities. Some of those directly named by Rafiq have totally rejected his accusations of racism. Others have either been unable to remember the cited events or have dismissed them as examples of “friendly banter” or other forms of playful behaviour without any malicious intent. Since Rafiq’s emergence as a “whistle-blower”, other players from Yorkshire as well as from other English counties have come forward with their own anecdotes of racism at their respective clubs.

Unfortunately for Rafiq, examples of anti-Semitic messages posted by him on Facebook in 2011 came out into the open just two days after his tearful presentation. His subsequent “heartfelt” apology to the Jewish community appears to have been accepted by at least some leaders of that community, who have at the same time sympathised with Rafiq’s current predicament.

Cricket can be considered as one of the undisputed legacies of the British Empire and the game remains immensely popular in several ex-British possessions in South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka), southern Africa (South Africa, Zimbabwe), and the Caribbean, often more so than in the country of its origin. In England, several players of South Asian heritage have played at county cricket level and for the nation, in contrast to their minimal presence in the more popular sport of football.

Yorkshire CCC was founded in 1863 and soon became one of the leading county clubs in England and home to many legendary players- past and present. From the outset, it was a parochial body and only accepted players who had been born on Yorkshire soil. The birth qualification was only abandoned in 1992 when players who were educated in Yorkshire, but not born in the county, also became eligible to play for the team. Later that same year, 19-year-old Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar was taken on by Yorkshire, after Geoff Boycott’s Yorkshire Club cricket committee voted 18 to one in favour of the decision. The move proved to be popular, boosted the club’s membership, and Tendulkar became a popular member of the team and eventually even an “Honorary Tyke”. Since then, many players lacking a Yorkshire heritage have played for the club and made a success of their careers.

Cricket appears to have less entrenched associations with racism than the more popular sport of football. Overtly racist behaviours that are commonly witnessed at footballing encounters are much less frequently encountered during cricket matches. Test matches are generally more colourful, laid-back and good-natured events, where South Asian and Caribbean immigrants frequently support their countries of origin when they face England at Test matches. A fear of divided loyalties among these supporters once led Conservative politician Norman Tebbit to coin the phrase “cricket test” in April 1990, as a test of their ability to integrate into their host communities and of their loyalty to Britain.

Despite the relatively peaceful situation on the cricket field, it seems that over time racist attitudes have become ingrained within the upper echelons of the game at both national and club level. And at last there seems to be some recognition that there may be a problem after all and that action is called for. In the aftermath of the Rafiq affair, Yorkshire CCC has faced sanctions by outside bodies that matter, with Headingley Stadium in Leeds being suspended from hosting England Test matches by the ECB, and with some high-profile sponsors terminating their contracts with the club. The ECB and the PCA (Professional Cricketers’ Association) have both come under fire after Rafiq claimed a lack of support from those bodies. The resignation on 5 November of Yorkshire chairman Roger Hutton was followed six days later by that of Mark Arthur, the club’s chief executive.  The ECB has in the meantime, however, drawn up a 12-point Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Action Plan for 2021-24, to which the eighteen English first-class cricketing counties are being asked to sign up to.

There seems a new willingness at national level, as articulated by both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the House of Commons, to tackle allegations of racism both within county cricket and in the conduct of the national game. It is now time for the cricketing officials in God’s Own Country, under a new chair (Lord Patel), to consider their options and for the ECB to tighten up its oversight of the game nationwide. It is even possible that some cosmetic changes will follow in due course. Unfortunately, racism is a part of the human condition and racist attitudes are a “hearts and minds” issue that cannot be merely sanctioned and then wished away. One can only hope that changing attitudes among the ranks of players and officials will eventually lead the English game of cricket towards happier times.

Ashis Banerjee.