The Professional Cricketers Association (PCA) will become the latest members of cricket’s hierarchy to give evidence to parliament’s DCMS committee over the racism scandal that erupted at Yorkshire CCC but has touched the entire sport.
The session, to be held next Tuesday, will be the third time cricket has been forced to sit down in front of Julian Knight’s panel in as many months. It follows Azeem Rafiq’s original testimony in November last year, and appearances from the ECB’s Tom Harrison and county chairs – Mike O’Farrell et al – last month.
The PCA representatives – James Harris, the union’s chair, Anuj Dal, the vice-chair, Julian Metherell, the non-executive chair, and Rob Lynch, the chief executive – are expected to be asked about the support they provided to Rafiq during his period of conflict with Yorkshire, which has since resulted in a mea culpa financial settlement from the club and an overhaul of its leadership under new chair, Kamlesh Patel.
In his evidence to the DCMS committee last November, Rafiq described the PCA’s response as “incredibly inept”, claiming that the union had refused to support him as he sought legal redress against Yorkshire for institutional racism, and that they only checked on his health during a period when he was suicidal due to “box-ticking”.
Rafiq went on to say “The PCA kept telling me when the report comes out, they would support me. Once it did, they said we have no powers, we can just push the ECB. An organisation that should have been there for me and supported me left me to fight on my own.”
The committee is also expected to explore the PCA’s involvement in the ECB’s 12-point plan to combat racism which it has embarked upon as it attempts to act upon the issues raised by Rafiq.
The situation at Yorkshire also reared its head during Friday’s post-Ashes cull briefing at Lord’s. Tom Harrison was asked about the latest situation at Headingley, following the cancellation of the club’s EGM and Lord Patel’s claims that individuals were trying to derail reform at the club.
Harrison said: “We had a board meeting on Tuesday and a delegation came down from Yorkshire to give us a very comprehensive presentation on the progress that Lord Patel and his team have made in the very short time that they have been in charge of YCCC.
“The only reflection I would have on the stuff overnight – and believe it or not I haven’t spent a lot of time looking at it because there’s been a few other things going on – but I would just reflect on a broader note that any suggestion that there is not a problem with racism in Yorkshire is a cause for great concern.”
In an email to members sent on 2 February, Yorkshire CCC made it clear that they intended to hold a further EGM before the end of this month.
