LONDON: A hearing into the racism scandal at Yorkshire started on Wednesday, with ex-player Azeem Rafiq set to give evidence more than two years after he made damning allegations over his treatment by the English county cricket club.
The initial proceedings were held in private but a live stream of the independent Cricket Discipline Commission panel’s deliberations was set to be broadcast to accredited journalists later in the day.
Pakistan-born Rafiq, 32, first raised allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, related to his two spells at Yorkshire.
He told a British parliamentary committee in December 2022 the abuse he and his family had faced had forced him to leave the UK.
Disrepute charges against seven individuals with prior connections to the county were issued by the England and Wales Cricket Board last June, with the club also charged.
But the only charged individual still set to appear is ex-England captain Michael Vaughan.
Former players and coaches Andrew Gale, Matthew Hoggard, Tim Bresnan, Richard Pyrah and John Blain have refused to engage with the process.
The CDC panel will still hear the charges against those five in their absence.
Gary Ballance, also charged, has already admitted using racially discriminatory language and will not appear.
Ballance, a former England Test player, is now playing for the country of his birth, Zimbabwe.
Yorkshire confirmed last week that documents relating to racism allegations against the club were deleted under the previous regime.
Previous officials at Yorkshire were roundly criticized for their handling of Rafiq’s case, with the ECB at one stage removing the county’s right to host lucrative England matches unless governance changes were made.
Rafiq alleges Vaughan told him and a group of Yorkshire team-mates of Asian ethnicity there were “too many of you lot, we need to do something about it” at a match in 2009.
Vaughan categorically denies the allegation, but Rafiq’s claim has been corroborated by current Yorkshire and England international Adil Rashid, as well as former Pakistan paceman Rana Naved-ul-Hasan.
Public hearing starts into Azeem Rafiq Yorkshire cricket racism scandal
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Public hearing starts into Azeem Rafiq Yorkshire cricket racism scandal
- A live stream of the independent Cricket Discipline Commission panel's deliberations was set to be broadcast to accredited journalists later in the day
- Pakistan-born Rafiq first raised allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, related to his two spells at Yorkshire
Players boycott forces Bangladesh cricket to remove official for disparaging remarks
- The board removed Nazmul Islam as chairman of the finance committee to meet player demands that he resign
- Two scheduled matches in the Bangladesh Premier League and four in the Dhaka Cricket League on Thursday were not played
DHAKA: A players boycott which postponed matches in the Bangladesh Premier League on Thursday prompted the Bangladesh Cricket Board to force out an official after his disparaging remarks about players started the disruption.
The board removed Nazmul Islam as chairman of the finance committee to meet player demands that he resign.
Two scheduled matches in the Bangladesh Premier League and four in the Dhaka Cricket League on Thursday were not played after the cricketers — many of them Bangladesh internationals — did not turn up at the grounds.
Neither the Cricketers Welfare Association of Bangladesh, the players’ body, nor the BCB said the boycott was over, putting in doubt whether Friday’s games in both domestic leagues will go ahead.
Nazmul said on Wednesday that he believed national cricketers should return the “crores and crores of taka” that the BCB spends on them if Bangladesh withdraws from the men’s T20 World Cup in India next month.
It’s a ripple from the BCB decision not to play World Cup matches in India after premier fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman was released by IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders on the instructions of the Board of Control for Cricket in India. The BCB wants its World Cup games moved to co-host Sri Lanka.
The players immediately threatened a domestic boycott if Nazmul didn’t resign and the BCB distanced itself from Nazmul’s comments. Then the BCB president got rid of him on Thursday.
“The decision ... is aimed at ensuring the continued smooth and effective functioning of the board’s affairs. Until further notice, the BCB president will assume the role of acting chairman of the finance committee,” a BCB statement said.
“The BCB reiterates that the interests of the cricketers remain its highest priority. The board remains fully committed to upholding the honor and dignity of all players under its jurisdiction.”
Bangladesh is scheduled to play three World Cup group games in Kolkata, including its opener against the West Indies on Feb. 7. One game is scheduled to be hosted in Mumbai.
