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Azeem Rafiq’s allegations are shocking but they are no surprise to many South Asian cricketers
In his article for Isport, Saj explains why Rafiq’s comments will have struck a chord with so many South Asian cricketers at all levels of the game and showed that the notion that cricket is immune from racism is nonsense
The allegations of racism made by former Yorkshire and England Youth captain Azeem Rafiq have shocked the world of cricket and led even the Prime Minister to call for action, but among Britain’s South Asian communities, who have experienced such appalling actions first-hand for many years, there is little surprise.
As one former cricketer from the West Midlands told i: “I’m glad that people are finally waking up and realising what has been going on in English cricket for many years. It’s about time action was taken and people realise what so many South Asian cricketers at all levels have had to put up with. We complained about racist abuse on the field, nothing happened, we complained about racism from people watching matches, it was brushed under the carpet. It was a total farce and a waste of time and why so many talented South Asian cricketers gave up on the sport.”
While sceptics initially doubted Rafiq’s true intentions when he made the allegations against Yorkshire as far back as August 2020, the recent publication of the county’s report into the matter has clearly vindicated the cricketer’s stance and cast a shadow on the game loved and played by millions across all communities in England.
The positive aspect of the saga is the fact that some uncomfortable truths have finally been made public. Many of these have been ignored for too long and it’s about time those involved at the highest levels of English cricket took matters seriously instead of just giving lip service. The time for fancy words, promises and carefully worded statements is long gone; now is the time for action and change.
For years, there have been murmurs of implicit and systemic bias against South Asians in the English game, primarily expressed by those on the wrong end of this treatment. But such grievances have historically been dismissed as only being raised by those who were not deserving of chances and such complaints had been considered sour grapes. Not until Rafiq, a former captain of England Under-19s, started speaking up did the magnitude of the crisis finally get the attention it deserved.
In a survey in January 2021 conducted by the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), it was found that 58 per cent of black, Asian and minority ethnic professional cricketers said they had experienced or witnessed racism in the sport. The more worrying aspect of the finding was the fact that racial abuse in a lot of cases was disguised as harmless banter, which was the justification given in Yorkshire’s report into the Rafiq affair for not pursuing further action against individuals.
While racial abuse and discrimination may have been discussed at length in other spheres of life in the United Kingdom, the game of cricket – at least according to those living in a fantasy land – had been largely immune to such allegations. That, I’m afraid, is utter rubbish and wishful thinking.
The presence of names such as Ravi Bopara, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali are usually touted as glowing examples of the all-inclusive nature of the game in England. However, what is conveniently forgotten is the fact that given the popularity of cricket among ethnic minorities in the UK, the number of cricketers from those backgrounds found at county or national level represents a miniscule fraction of such players. That factor in itself should have rung alarm bells in the corridors of power of English cricket but scant regard has been paid to this aspect by the authorities.
Speaking to i, the parent of a promising South Asian cricketer from London stated that “Asian cricketers have to be twice as good as their counterparts to even get a look in. Too often coaches look at the colour of the skin of a boy and have already made their mind up about him. It’s disheartening as a parent and it’s demoralising for the child because they know they are better than many of their counterparts but are the wrong colour and not given a fair crack of the whip. Whether it’s at trials, matches or practice, Asian cricketers are seen by many as second-class citizens and given limited opportunities to show their talent.”
There is no doubt that many talented British Asian players have not been given a fair chance in the professional game simply due to the colour of their skin or the ethnic origins of their parents. The road to the top has always been a bumpy one for Asians but watching their white counterparts rise up the ladder sometimes with less effort and at times less skill, must be heart-breaking for many budding cricketers. Coupled with the fact that many feel demoralised by the need to perform much better to rise to county or national level than others, one can understand the lack of South Asians at the highest levels of English cricket – after all who would want to put in all that time and effort only to be sent packing?
The reality is that if you are a person of colour, you realise that racism runs through the veins of English cricket – it’s there from school cricket right through to the first-class game, in press boxes, in the stands, at the turnstiles, in boardrooms. The powers that be have to realise before it’s too late that there is no better time than the present to do something about it and eradicate this problem.
https://inews.co.uk/sport/cricket/a...ions-south-asian-cricketers-yorkshire-1283910
In his article for Isport, Saj explains why Rafiq’s comments will have struck a chord with so many South Asian cricketers at all levels of the game and showed that the notion that cricket is immune from racism is nonsense
The allegations of racism made by former Yorkshire and England Youth captain Azeem Rafiq have shocked the world of cricket and led even the Prime Minister to call for action, but among Britain’s South Asian communities, who have experienced such appalling actions first-hand for many years, there is little surprise.
As one former cricketer from the West Midlands told i: “I’m glad that people are finally waking up and realising what has been going on in English cricket for many years. It’s about time action was taken and people realise what so many South Asian cricketers at all levels have had to put up with. We complained about racist abuse on the field, nothing happened, we complained about racism from people watching matches, it was brushed under the carpet. It was a total farce and a waste of time and why so many talented South Asian cricketers gave up on the sport.”
While sceptics initially doubted Rafiq’s true intentions when he made the allegations against Yorkshire as far back as August 2020, the recent publication of the county’s report into the matter has clearly vindicated the cricketer’s stance and cast a shadow on the game loved and played by millions across all communities in England.
The positive aspect of the saga is the fact that some uncomfortable truths have finally been made public. Many of these have been ignored for too long and it’s about time those involved at the highest levels of English cricket took matters seriously instead of just giving lip service. The time for fancy words, promises and carefully worded statements is long gone; now is the time for action and change.
For years, there have been murmurs of implicit and systemic bias against South Asians in the English game, primarily expressed by those on the wrong end of this treatment. But such grievances have historically been dismissed as only being raised by those who were not deserving of chances and such complaints had been considered sour grapes. Not until Rafiq, a former captain of England Under-19s, started speaking up did the magnitude of the crisis finally get the attention it deserved.
In a survey in January 2021 conducted by the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), it was found that 58 per cent of black, Asian and minority ethnic professional cricketers said they had experienced or witnessed racism in the sport. The more worrying aspect of the finding was the fact that racial abuse in a lot of cases was disguised as harmless banter, which was the justification given in Yorkshire’s report into the Rafiq affair for not pursuing further action against individuals.
While racial abuse and discrimination may have been discussed at length in other spheres of life in the United Kingdom, the game of cricket – at least according to those living in a fantasy land – had been largely immune to such allegations. That, I’m afraid, is utter rubbish and wishful thinking.
The presence of names such as Ravi Bopara, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali are usually touted as glowing examples of the all-inclusive nature of the game in England. However, what is conveniently forgotten is the fact that given the popularity of cricket among ethnic minorities in the UK, the number of cricketers from those backgrounds found at county or national level represents a miniscule fraction of such players. That factor in itself should have rung alarm bells in the corridors of power of English cricket but scant regard has been paid to this aspect by the authorities.
Speaking to i, the parent of a promising South Asian cricketer from London stated that “Asian cricketers have to be twice as good as their counterparts to even get a look in. Too often coaches look at the colour of the skin of a boy and have already made their mind up about him. It’s disheartening as a parent and it’s demoralising for the child because they know they are better than many of their counterparts but are the wrong colour and not given a fair crack of the whip. Whether it’s at trials, matches or practice, Asian cricketers are seen by many as second-class citizens and given limited opportunities to show their talent.”
There is no doubt that many talented British Asian players have not been given a fair chance in the professional game simply due to the colour of their skin or the ethnic origins of their parents. The road to the top has always been a bumpy one for Asians but watching their white counterparts rise up the ladder sometimes with less effort and at times less skill, must be heart-breaking for many budding cricketers. Coupled with the fact that many feel demoralised by the need to perform much better to rise to county or national level than others, one can understand the lack of South Asians at the highest levels of English cricket – after all who would want to put in all that time and effort only to be sent packing?
The reality is that if you are a person of colour, you realise that racism runs through the veins of English cricket – it’s there from school cricket right through to the first-class game, in press boxes, in the stands, at the turnstiles, in boardrooms. The powers that be have to realise before it’s too late that there is no better time than the present to do something about it and eradicate this problem.
https://inews.co.uk/sport/cricket/a...ions-south-asian-cricketers-yorkshire-1283910
