Former England international Tim Bresnan has been accused of making a vile racial slur about the sister of ex-Yorkshire teammate Azeem Rafiq as an investigation into institutional racism in the sport continues.
The public Cricket Discipline Commission hearing began on Wednesday with allegations against former Yorkshire trio Tim Bresnan, Matthew Hoggard and John Blain heard on day one. All three have denied bringing the game into disrepute and using racial slurs.
Bresnan, 38, - who spent 18 years as a professional at Yorkshire - has been accused of using discriminatory language to describe Rafiq’s sister at a Yorkshire media day back in 2014. It is alleged he referred to Rafiq's sister as a "fit p***".
The former England man is also alleged to have referred to Rafiq and his fellow Asian teammates Adil Rashid, Ajmal Shahzad and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan as 'you lot' and 'the brothers'. Bresnan denied that the use of 'brothers' was not done in a racist manner, whilst admits he fails to remember using the term 'you lot'.
ECB lawyer Jane Mulcahy KC claimed that it was 'more likely than not' that the three accused players used the alleged racist terms during their time at Yorkshire. Mulcahy said: "On balance of probability, more likely than not, that he used the phrase and it was racist or discriminatory."
Hoggard meanwhile has been accused of similar abuses, most notably using the word 'p****' to describe Rafiq and his Asian teammates, as well describing the former spinner as 'Rafa the Kaffir'. The 2005 Ashes winner admitted to using both terms, but denied any racist or discriminatory intent.
Commenting on Hoggard's alleged comments, Mulcahy told the pannel: "It is obvious that Hoggard has caused prejudice and/or disrepute for cricket and himself, due to the systemic use of racist or discriminatory language at Yorkshire and the fact he admitted to using the word 'P***'."
Blain has also been accused of using the term 'p***' to describe Pakistani players within the team during pre-season with Yorkshire in 2010. Majid Haq is also set to provide evidence this Friday, however his statement was read on Wednesday, where he too alleged Blain used the phrase “p***”, this time back in 2007.
Haq claimed to have challenged Blain on the use of the term, but the 44-year-old defended himself by claiming he would describe an Australian as an Aussie, and somebody from New Zealand as a Kiwi. The trio of Bresnan, Hoggard, and Blain all failed to attend the hearing along with former coach Andrew Gale and Richard Pyrah.
