What is the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket report?
In March 2021 the English and Wales Cricket Board asked an independent panel to examine discrimination and inequity in cricket in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and a consequent renewed focus on the Black Lives Matter movement. Eight months later the former Yorkshire cricketer Azeem Rafiq gave testimony to the culture, media and sport select committee about abuse he said he had endured in the sport which threw the issue further into the spotlight and led to the Icec receiving so much evidence it delayed their report by several months.
What are the report’s key findings?
Across 317 pages of its landmark report, Icec warns that racism is “entrenched in English cricket”, says that women and women’s teams are “frequently demeaned, stereotyped and treated as second-class”, and tells the ECB board that it must “urgently address deep rooted and widespread institutional, structural and interpersonal discrimination across the game”.
And it is also critical of the way the game discriminates against working class players?
Correct. The report, Holding Up A Mirror to Cricket, says the sport is “elitist and exclusionary”, with those from lower-class backgrounds often facing barriers they cannot overcome as “private school and ‘old boys’ networks’ and cliques permeate the game to the exclusion of many”. At the same time, it does acknowledge that recent initiatives, such as the South Asian Action Plan and the Transforming Women’s and Girls’ Cricket Action Plan have had a positive impact across the game.
How did the Icec reach its findings?
It started by asking people to describe their experiences in cricket in an online survey in late 2021, which received more than 4,000 replies. The commission then supplemented this with written and oral evidence from hundreds of players, counties, women’s regional teams and other organisations linked to cricket. The Icec says many of the findings of the survey alone were eye-opening. For instance, 87% of people with Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage said they had experienced discrimination in the game in the past five years, with 82% of Indian heritage and 75% of all Black respondents saying the same.
Does the report also question cricket’s broader culture too?
It does. The commission cites numerous examples of a racist, misogynistic, homophobic comments at all levels, as well as a “laddish” drinking culture that can alienate women, children and people from ethnically diverse communities. It also says that “overt discrimination often goes without serious challenge” and that the game’s complaints system “is not fit for purpose”.
Who was on the Icec panel?
The commission is chaired by Cindy Butts, who was previously the deputy of chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority, and comprises four members: Zafar Ansari, a former Surrey and England cricketer; Sir Brendan Barber, former general secretary of the Trades Union Congress; Dr Michael Collins, a professor of modern British history at University College London; and Michelle Moore, who has worked across sport, government and education.
What recommendations does the report make?
The commission makes 44 recommendations to transform cricket’s culture and governance including that, as a first step, the ECB makes an unqualified public apology. The ECB has now done that. In a statement Richard Thompson, the ECB chair, said: “On behalf of the ECB and wider leadership of the game, I apologise unreservedly to anyone who has ever been excluded from cricket or made to feel like they don’t belong. Cricket should be a game for everyone, and we know that this has not always been the case. I am determined that this is a wake-up call for cricket.”
What else does the Icec want cricket to do?
The commission also suggests a range of proposals – some modest, some radical. It urges the ECB to transform its complaints procedure and develop ongoing “culture health checks” to monitor cricket’s progress in making reforms. More radically, it calls for there to be equal pay between men and women at domestic level by 2029 and at international level by 2030. And in a move that may upset traditionalists, it recommends to the MCC that the annual fixtures between Eton and Harrow, and Oxford and Cambridge are no longer played at Lord’s after 2023. Instead it calls for them to be replaced by national finals days for state school U15 competitions for boys and girls and a national finals day for competitions for men’s and women’s university teams.
