A former professional Muslim cricketer has shared a “harrowing” account of his firsthand experiences of racism at Yorkshire County Cricket Club (YCCC). 30-year-old British Pakistani all-rounder Azeem Rafiq gave evidence to the powerful parliamentary Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee on Tuesday. In his testimony, he described coming “close to committing suicide”, being called derogatory names by teammates, as well as receiving abuse from the top echelons at YCCC. The vile abuse of Rafiq is worryingly indicative of further such incidents, albeit many of which may perhaps never be revealed due to a culture of fear on the part of victims, and a misperception of ‘innocent banter’ on the side of perpetrators. [1]
Undoubtedly, the horrific experiences of Rafiq have rocked British cricket. Indeed, fellow sportsmen such as Adil Rashid and Pakistan international Rana Naved-ul-Hasan have shared corroborating accounts. Both assert that former Yorkshire and England captain Michael Vaughan once told Rafiq and fellow Asian teammates that there are “too many of you lot, we need to do something about it”. Moreover, YCCC have announced an investigation into allegations that an unnamed Asian player was urinated upon his head by another team member, in addition to overhearing more senior players discussing the defilement of an Islamic prayer mat. [1]
On November 4, the first-class county club was dramatically suspended from hosting events by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). The club’s ban will remain in place “until it has clearly demonstrated that it can meet the standards expected of an international venue, ECB member, and First Class County”. [2]
When asked to share evidence to the DCMS Committee, Rafiq stated:
“There was a lot of ‘you lot sit over there near the toilets’, the word Paki was used constantly, no one ever stamped it out. All I wanted to do was play cricket. Towards the end of my first spell but constantly throughout, I knew there was something wrong. I started taking medication for my mental health. It was really tough.” [3]
While expressing praise for the current England captain Joe Root, Rafiq also laid some criticism on Root for his claim that he had never witnessed any racist abuse whilst at Yorkshire. At the same time, Rafiq said: “Rooty is a good man. He never engaged in racist language.” [3]
The youngest man to captain Yorkshire and the first Asian to hold such a position, Rafiq added:
“I found it hurtful because Rooty was Gary [Ballance]’s housemate and had been involved in a lot of the socialising where I was called a ‘Paki’. It shows how normal it was that even a good man like him doesn’t see it for what it was. It’s not going to affect Joe but it’s something I remember every day.” [3]
Gary Ballance is a former Yorkshire captain with a stained reputation. In his statement, Rafiq strongly condemned Ballance for the “toxic” environment that he created within the wider team. Rafiq alleged that Ballance once approached others in the team and asked, “Why are you talking to him [Rafiq], he’s not a sheikh, he hasn’t got oil.” Furthermore, the use of the nickname “Kevin” was raised by DCMS Committee chairman Julian Knight. Rafiq provided the following explanation: “‘Kevin’ was something Gary used to describe anyone of colour in a very derogatory manner. It was an open secret in the England dressing room…Anyone who came across Gary would know that was a phrase he would use to describe people of colour.” [3]
Over the last 14 months I have told both @PCA & @ECB_cricket that someone needs to show leadership & take this out of @YorkshireCCC hands
No one believed me, no one listened everyone tried to protect themselves and left me all alone to fight
TIME FOR THE FULL TRUTH
— Azeem Rafiq (@AzeemRafiq30) November 2, 2021
Azeem Rafiq’s testimony during the DCMS panel painted a picture of systemic racism and Islamophobia at YCCC. Even the likes of coach Andrew Gale added fuel to the fire by enabling Ballance to engage in “racist banter”.
“Andrew joined in with Gary and others in the racist banter. Throughout my time at YCCC, Andrew called me ‘Raffa the Kaffir’, ‘Paki’ and so on. But it was the discriminatory treatment and bullying I felt from him that was harder for me than the name-calling. There were numerous incidents where I felt that Andrew was aggressive and rude towards me in ways he wasn’t with white players.” [3]
Prior to Rafiq’s appearance before the DCMS, chairman of YCCC Roger Hutton resigned from his post while apologising for the club’s lack of “appropriate and timely action”. Furthermore, Hutton recognised that there was “a culture that refuses to accept change or challenge”. Following the YCCC’s suspension from hosting events for the foreseeable future, Hutton took aim at the regulatory board for “the ECB’s reluctance to act”.
Unfortunately, allegations of Islamophobia and racism may only be the tip of the iceberg with Azeem Rafiq’s case. The bickering between the ECB, YCCC, and Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) further aggravates the matter, and illustrates how institutions and governing bodies are far too busy trying to shift the blame on one another. As a result, the more important aims of achieving justice, accepting responsibility and ownership of what has gone wrong, and learning from mistakes are lost in all the commotion.
Some of those accused in Rafiq’s testimony to the DCMS Committee have already sought to refute his claims. Others, such as Michael Vaughan, have been suspended from broadcasting duties. Vaughan, who has a contract with Radio 5 Live, has had his Tuffers and Vaughan Cricket Show shelved, while the BBC reviews how best to tackle the racism allegations made against him. [4]
Source: www.islam21c.com
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