Pears ace Moeen backs case to tackle racism in cricket - The Worcester Observer

Pears ace Moeen backs case to tackle racism in cricket

Worcester Editorial 12th Nov, 2021   0

WORCESTERSHIRE cricket star Moeen Ali has revealed his hope the crisis engulfing Yorkshire County Cricket Club will lead to change in how racism is tackled in the sport.

Moeen has become the latest British born Muslim to speak out after Yorkshire chiefs dismissed the use of the word ‘P***’ against former spinner Azeem Rafiq as ‘banter’.

Health Secretary and county MP Sajid Javid, the son of a Pakistani born bus driver, had early attacked the dismissal of the use of the derogatory term and called for ‘heads to roll’ at the ECB if action was not taken.

Speaking from the UAE where he is representing England in the World T20, Moeen addressed the matter and admitted he wasn’t surprised by the revelations.




“I would say there’s probably more stories out there that people haven’t heard of and I won’t be surprised if more do come out,” he said.

“It’s great that it has come out because going forward I think you can’t just come into the game or any sort of sport really or any walk of life and say things like that.


“I think people have to think about what they can say and can’t say in terms of discriminating against people.

“Azeem’s talked a lot about his mental health and I think that is really important. It’s not banter at the end of the day.

“I don’t think you should ever use that form of language. When the environment is right that’s when that sort of language, that sort of banter doesn’t come out.

“Hopefully it is a huge step going forward and in the future and this sort of mindset won’t be around,” he added.

Yorkshire CCC has lost the right to stage England internationals for the foreseeable future, saw its chairman resign but offered a full apology to Rafiq on Monday (November 8) as incoming chair Lord Kamlesh Patel vowed to tackle the situation.

Azeem Rafiq should be ‘praised’ for his bravery and ‘should never have been put through’ the Yorkshire County Cricket Club racism scandal, Lord Patel said

The new chair said Yorkshire has settled the employment tribunal with Rafiq.

“Azeem is a whistleblower and should be praised as such,” Patel said.

“We’re sorry for what you and your family have experienced and the way in which we’ve handled this.

“I thank Azeem for his bravery in speaking out. Let me be clear from the outset, racism or discrimination in any form is not banter.”

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