A full assessment of locker room culture is part of a wide-ranging action plan to tackle stigma and racism in cricket in England and Wales.
It was launched following accusations made by Azeem Rafiq and several other players.
The five-point plan has “12 tangible actions”, while the England and Wales Cricket Council (ECB) has committed £25m over five years.
The ECB will also set up a new anti-discrimination unit within six months.
Last week, former Yorkshire cameraman Rafiq told the Digital, Culture, Media & Sport selection committee that the English game was “institutionally racist”.
Rafiq’s allegations against the district were echoed by former academy player Irfan Amjad and another anonymous player.
Jahid Ahmed, Maurice Chambers and Zoheb Sharif have also announced their time with Essex.
Sports Secretary Nigel Huddlestone said the government could exercise the “nuclear option” of creating an independent regulator if the ECB did not “put its house in order” on the issue of racism .
“The past few weeks have been very, very difficult,” said ECB CEO Tom Harrison. “It feels like an earthquake has hit us.
“Our game was portrayed in the worst possible way in the world media. Azeem’s testimony and testimony from others revealed serious problems that we didn’t. resolved for decades.
“Clearly there are a large number of people in the country who feel like cricket is not for them. This is our latest attempt to say we are listening and we are desperate to resolve the issue. “
The action plan co-published by the ECB, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Professional Cricket Association, 41 counties, women’s sector and entertainment network is described as a “comprehensive response to fragmentation discrimination”.
12 actions each of which falls under one of five points, as follows:
- Listen, care and educate – the establishment of a standardized method for handling complaints, advancing the goals of the Independent Commission on Equity in Cricket and providing all cricketers with a Fair education Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) continuity.
- The address of the changing room culture – publishes a complete assessment of dressing room culture in all professional teams, re-evaluating player and coach education.
- Remove barriers in the path of talent – improve support for people from diverse backgrounds, identify talent from non-traditional backgrounds, and act to achieve a minimum of 20% gender diversity and an appropriate level of ethnic diversity.
- Create a friendly environment for everyone – comprehensive assessment of crowd behavior at professional matches, ensuring venues are welcoming of all faiths and cultures, upgrading recreational cricket education.
- Publish localized action plans within six months – each organization will offer diversity on its board (30% female, ethnically representative) by April 2022, adopting an anonymous recruitment tool for all senior roles, every senior executive in the game for personalized EDI goals.
Harrison could not confirm who would lead the assessment of the dressing room culture, which will look at every professional men’s and women’s team in the country.
Rafiq accused his former Yorkshire team-mate Gary Ballance of using the term ‘Kevin’ to describe a person of color during the four years he played for England from 2013 to 2017.
There were eight members of England’s Ashes men’s team that played international cricket with Ballance. None of them have yet to comment on Rafiq’s allegations.
“I know the impact of recent events has been fully accepted by British men in Australia,” said Harrison. They talked about that.
“How does the dressing room continue to evolve its culture and effectively reflect the sense of exit from the conversation the game is having at the moment?
“There’s an ever-evolving requirement to move culture along with nationalist sentiment and the way the world is changing.”
As for ‘allegations’, the ECB confirms that responsibility for handling complaints and allegations can be delegated to a third party to prevent conflicts of interest.
Although the actions are detailed in the report, Harrison said he feels it “probably” could have gone further.
When asked about his own future as ECB chief executive, he said he was “very committed to getting this sorted out in the game”.
“I understand that I have the support of the game,” added Harrison.
“I know that we are in the wharf for word, word, word, and inaction.
“I don’t think that’s what cricket has ever done right. We need to get into the community and talk to people.
“Is there room for truth and reconciliation? It feels like until we have a common understanding of our history it will be difficult for us to move forward together.”
