England captain Ben Stokes ‘sorry’ after cricket report exposes racism and sexism
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Ben Stokes's comments followed the publication by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket of its much-anticipated report.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – England cricket captain Ben Stokes said on Tuesday he was “deeply sorry” to learn of the scale of discrimination in the sport, after a damning report revealed “widespread” racism, sexism and classism in the game.
His comments followed the publication by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) of its much-anticipated report on Monday.
The commission, set up by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), made 44 recommendations, including that the board makes an “unqualified public apology” for its failings, which it did on the same day.
The ICEC was established in 2021 following a racism scandal centred around the treatment of Pakistan-born bowler Azeem Rafiq at Yorkshire.
In a separate development, the ECB said the county club should be fined £500,000 (S$860,000) and given points deductions over their handling of the case.
Of the more than 4,000 individuals interviewed for the ICEC report, 50 per cent described experiencing discrimination in the previous five years, with the figures substantially higher for people from ethnically diverse communities.
Women are treated as “subordinate” to men at all levels of cricket, the report found, adding that they receive an “embarrassingly small amount” of pay compared to their male counterparts.
The ICEC report also states that not enough has been done to address class barriers in the game, with fee-paying private schools dominating the talent pathway.
Stokes reacted to the publication of the report by saying: “To the people involved in the game who have been made to feel unwelcome or unaccepted in the past, I am deeply sorry to hear of your experiences.
“Cricket is a game that needs to celebrate diversity on all fronts because without diversity this game would not be where it is at today.
“Everyone has a different story to tell. I am Ben Stokes, born in New Zealand, a state-educated pupil who dropped out of school at 16 with one GCSE (qualification) in PE.
“I need help with the spelling and grammar in this speech and I am currently sitting here as the England men’s Test captain.”
ECB chairman Richard Thompson said his organisation would “use this moment to reset cricket”, while he apologised “unreservedly to anyone who has ever been excluded from cricket or made to feel like they don’t belong”.
Rafiq, meanwhile, welcomed the findings and acknowledged the “extraordinary work” that had gone into the inquiry.
“There is no doubt now that the game we all love has suffered from institutionalised discrimination, including racism,” he said.
“This report is an opportunity to fully reflect on what has happened and for the sport’s governing structures to work out a way forward.” AFP
