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Tag: Azeem Rafiq

Sports

ECB launches cricket regulator to tackle discrimination | Cricket News – Times of India

LONDON: The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on Monday announced it had set up an independent cricket regulator after a damning report revealed racism, sexism, classism and elitism in the sport.The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) published its findings in June, revealing "widespread" discrimination in the game and making 44 recommendations.The ICEC was established in 2021 following a racism scandal centred around the treatment of Pakistan-born bowler Azeem Rafiq at Yorkshire County Cricket Club.The new regulator will be responsible for monitoring compliance with the game's regulations, safeguarding, anti-corruption, anti-doping and anti-discrimination.The body will be headed by former police officer Dave Lewis, taking the role of interim director, and will be ov...
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Yorkshire Cricket: Yorkshire County Cricket Club punished over racism scandal | Cricket News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Yorkshire County Cricket Club were docked 48 points in the English County Championship on Friday after pleading guilty to four offences relating to the Azeem Rafiq racism scandal.The club was also penalised £400,000 ($514,000) by the independent Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC), with £300,000 suspended for two years.Yorkshire have dropped to the bottom of County Championship Division Two as a result of the points punishment.In September 2020, Pakistan-born bowler Rafiq, 32, went public with charges of racism and bullying relating to his two periods at the English county.Yorkshire's board of directors issued a statement recognizing the sanctions."The CDC and ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) have today acknowledged the vast amount of work done by YCCC to overcome the cu...
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Racism case: Yorkshire County Cricket Club faces 500,000 pounds fine | Cricket News – Times of India

According to British media reports, the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has informed an independent Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) panel that Yorkshire should be imposed a fine of £500,000 ($636,600) and face point deductions due to their mishandling of racism allegations raised by former player Azeem Rafiq. Yorkshire had previously acknowledged four revised charges of bringing the game into disrepute earlier this year.In 2021, Rafiq, a former captain of the England Under-19s team with Pakistani heritage, testified before a British parliamentary committee about his distressing experiences at Yorkshire. He described the treatment he endured as "inhuman" and expressed his belief that he had been subjected to institutional racism within the club.The proposed sporting penalties...
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Racism ‘deep-rooted’ in English cricket, says report | Cricket News – Times of India

England's apex cricket body vows to "reset" the game in the country after a damning report on racism and sexism. Following the release of an independent report on Tuesday, which highlighted the insufficient efforts made to address institutional racism and sexism in cricket, England cricket chiefs have pledged to take action and initiate a comprehensive reset of the game.The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2021 to investigate issues of diversity, inclusion and equity within the sport, prompted by a racism scandal. Azeem Rafiq, a bowler of Pakistani origin, publicly shared allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, specifically relating to his time at Yorkshire, an English county team.The ICEC r...
Sports

Six former Yorkshire players sanctioned for using racist language by disciplinary panel

Six former Yorkshire players have been sanctioned for the alleged use of racist and discriminatory language in verdicts released by the Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) panel on Friday. Yorkshire and a number of individuals were charged by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) last year after an investigation into racism allegations made by Azeem Rafiq, who said in 2021 he had been a victim of institutional racism at the club. In March, ex-England captain Michael Vaughan was cleared of using racist language towards Rafiq, but a CDC panel upheld charges against former Yorkshire players Tim Bresnan, John Blain, Matthew Hoggard, Andrew Gale and Richard Pyrah. Gary Ballance, who announced his retirement from cricket in April, did not attend the hearing in March as he had already admi...
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Ex-England cricket captain Vaughan cleared of racism charge

Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan was cleared by a disciplinary panel on March 31 of making a racist remark toward a group of Yorkshire teammates of Asian ethnicity in 2009, the latest stage of a scandal that has left a cloud over the English game.Other former players were found, however, to have used racist or discriminatory language in a scandal that erupted when Azeem Rafiq — a former player at Yorkshire — went public in 2020 saying he had been the victim of racial harassment and bullying across two spells at English cricket’s most successful club between 2008-18.Among his allegations, which were heard in a tearful testimony at the British parliament and led to Yorkshire losing sponsors and briefly the right to host international matches, Rafiq accused Vaughan of saying ...
Sports

Michael Vaughan cleared of using racist language by disciplinary panel | Cricket News – Times of India

Former England captain Michael Vaughan has been cleared of using racist language towards ex-Yorkshire team mate Azeem Rafiq in verdicts released by the Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) panel on Friday.The panel found the charge against Vaughan was not proved, after the case against him and five other former Yorkshire players was heard in London this month.Yorkshire and a number of individuals were charged by the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) last year after an investigation into racism allegations made by Rafiq, who said in 2021 he had been a victim of institutional racism at the club.Rafiq, a player of Pakistani descent who has said English cricket is institutionally racist, alleged Vaughan told him and other players of Asian origin that there were "too many of you lot, we...
Sports

‘Inconceivable’: Michael Vaughan denies making racist comments | Cricket News – Times of India

Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan on Friday denied making racist comments against his ex-teammates from Yorkshire cricket club as accused by Azeem Rafiq. Vaughan told a hearing into accusations of racism at Yorkshire it was "inconceivable" that he would make the comment attributed to him by Rafiq.Vaughan and a number of other former players at the county cricket club face charges related to the use of racially discriminatory language. Pakistan-born Rafiq, 32, first went public with allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, related to his two spells at the club.Rafiq alleged Vaughan told him and three other Yorkshire players of Asian origin "there's too many of you lot, we need to do something about it", before a 2009 Twenty20 match between Yorkshire and Nottingh...
Sports

Azeem Rafiq challenged over Michael Vaughan ‘discrepancy’ at cricket racism hearing | Cricket News – Times of India

LONDON: Azeem Rafiq was questioned over his two versions of former England captain Michael Vaughan's alleged racist comment towards him during a hearing in London on Thursday.Pakistan-born Rafiq, 32, first went public with allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, related to his two spells at Yorkshire County Cricket Club.He had informed Yorkshire's initial 2021 probe that Vaughan had told Rafiq and three other players before a match: "There's too many of you lot, we need to do something about it."But during the second day of a Cricket Discipline Commission hearing, Vaughan's lawyer referred to a Wisden interview in which Rafiq quoted Vaughan as saying: "There's too many of you lot, we need to have a word about that."Rafiq said the second version was the one he remembered, a...
Sports

Michael Vaughan racism allegations ‘word against word’, cricket hearing told | Cricket News – Times of India

LONDON: Michael Vaughan's lawyer said allegations of racism made against the former England captain by Azeem Rafiq are "word against word" at a hearing in London on Thursday.Pakistan-born Rafiq, 32, first raised allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, related to his two spells at Yorkshire County Cricket Club.He told British lawmakers in December 2022 that the abuse he and his family had faced had forced him to leave the UK.Vaughan and fellow former Yorkshire players Matthew Hoggard, Tim Bresnan, John Blain, Andrew Gale and Richard Pyrah all face charges related to the use of racially discriminatory language.The case against Vaughan was heard by the Cricket Discipline Commission panel on day two of the hearing on Thursday.ECB lawyer Jane Mulcahy repeated the allegation tha...
Sports

1st T20I: Former England batsman Ballance makes winning debut for Zimbabwe | Cricket News – Times of India

HARARE: Former England batsman Gary Ballance contributed 30 runs on his international debut for Zimbabwe as they beat Ireland by five wickets on Thursday to win the opening Twenty20 international of their three-match series.Ballance's runs came off 29 balls as Zimbabwe scored 118-5 as they initially made heavy weather of chasing down Ireland's modest total of 114 all out but in the end won with two overs to spare at the Harare Sports Club.The 33-year-old left-handed batter last month signed a two-year contract to play domestic and international cricket in the country of his birth following his release from county cricket side Yorkshire.Ballance played 23 Tests for England between 2014 and 2017, scoring 1,498 runs, including four centuries, at an average of 37.45. He also appeared in 16 ...