By: Shilpa Sharma
Azeem Rafiq, 30, former Yorkshire player narrated his ordeal of facing racism during his cricketing career in England on Tuesday (16), calling English cricket “institutionally” racist.
Giving his emotional testimony before a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee, Rafiq spoke for almost two hours, stopping occasionally to gather himself.
He said: “I felt isolated, humiliated at times.
“There were comments such as ‘you lot sit over there near the toilets’, ‘Elephant washers’. The word ‘P**i’ was used constantly and there just seems to be an acceptance in the institution from the leaders an no one ever stamped it out.”
Born at Karachi in Pakistan in 1991, Rafiq moved to England in 2001. As a child he played cricket for Barnsley Cricket Club and for Yorkshire schools sides.
In his bold and detailed description of institutional racism Rafiq said that racism ruined his career.
He said: “I was young kid from Pakistan living in Barnsley with a dream to represent England.
“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.”
He added the situation worsened further during his second spell in 2016 and atmosphere became “toxic” after Gary Ballance took charge as captain later that year.
He even said the club gave him “inhuman” treatment after his son was still-born in 2017.
Rafiq said he found the England Test captain Joe Root’s assertion that he never witnessed racism at Yorkshire as “hurtful”.
Through his testimony and written statement, Rafiq has named nine high profile cricket figures.
Subsequently, Yorkshire’s former chairman Roger Hutton addressed the committee, followed by representatives from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), including chief executive Tom Harrison.
In his address, Hutton offered his “profound apologies” to Rafiq, saying Yorkshire’s director of cricket Martyn Moxon and former chief executive Mark Arthur “failed to accept the gravity of the situation”.
Rafiq highlighted that British Asian representation in professional cricket dropped nearly 40 per cent since 2010 due to racism.
He also called on the ECB “to make tangible change”.
Reacting to Rafiq’s testimony which was broadcasted unedited, anti-racism and anti-fascism campaign group Hope not Hate chief executive Nick Lowles said it was “heartbreaking”.
Other players have also raised voice against racism. Former Yorkshire academy players Irfan Amjad and Tabassum Bhatti have also alleged they received racist abuse while at the club.
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