Gold Coast: England Test captain Joe Root on Thursday said the ‘intolerable’ Yorkshire racism episode has ‘fractured our game and torn lives apart’ and called for change and actions from his county team.
The cricket club recently concluded that no players, executive or staff would face any action over former Yorkshire cricketer Azeem Rafiq claimed himself of being a victim of racism and bullying during his time with the county, leading to major sponsors this week abandoning deals over the handling of the case. While several sponsors have dissociated themselves from Yorkshire after the situation the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has suspended the county’s rights to host any international or major event.
“These events have fractured our game and torn lives apart. We must now recover and come back together as fans, players, media, and those who work within cricket. We have an opportunity to make the sport I love better for everyone,” Root said in a statement issued on Thursday.
The 30-year-old Root has played for Yorkshire his entire career and has been a teammate of Rafiq, who was the team’s youngest ever captain. Root said, “In my capacity as England captain and as a senior player at Yorkshire, I feel compelled to address the current situation that has consumed the sport and YCCC. I just want the sport to be a place where everyone is enjoying it for the beautiful game it is and feels equal and safe. It hurts knowing this has happened at YCCC so close to home. It’s my club that I care passionately about it. I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting. There is no debate about racism, no one side or other. It is simply intolerable.”
“I want to see change and actions that will see YCCC rise from this with a culture that harnesses a diverse environment with trust across all communities that support cricket in the county. We have to find a way to move forward and make sure this never happens again. In my opinion, this is a societal issue and needs addressing further afield than just cricket,” Root added.
— Joe Root (@root66) November 11, 2021
Rafiq, a former England under-19 captain, said in interviews last year that as a Muslim he was made to feel like an “outsider” during two stints at Yorkshire from 2008-18 and was close to taking his own life. After that a formal investigation was held by Yorkshire in September 2020 on the basis of the 43 allegations made by Rafiq, It found Rafiq was the victim of racial harassment and bullying.
However, according to Yorkshire a racial slur directed at Rafiq was delivered ‘in the spirit of friendly banter’. The England and Wales Cricket Board has started its own investigation and criticized the Yorkshire for its ‘wholly unacceptable’ response to the racism faced by Rafiq. While former chairman Roger Hutton resigned and was replaced by Kamlesh Patel. The newly appointed chairman, Patel, apologized to Rafiq this week, praising him for his bravery.
“That being said, we, as a sport, all have to do more. How can we all help shape things moving forward positively? What can everyone from myself, the ECB, counties, players, officials and others in the sport do to improve the state of the game? I certainly don’t have all the answers, but I think we need to educate more and earlier; we must call it out straight away and have our eyes and ears open more.” The statement further read.
