ISLAMABAD July 28 (Online): Yorkshire County Cricket Club were slapped with a huge 48-point deduction in the English County Championship on Friday after admitting four charges related to the Azeem Rafiq racism scandal.<\/p>\n
Pakistan-born bowler Rafiq, 32, went public with allegations of racism and bullying in September 2020, related to his two spells at the English county.<\/p>\n
The independent Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) also fined the club 400,000 pounds ($514,000), 300,000 of which is suspended for two years.
\nThe points penalty sends Yorkshire to the bottom of Division Two of the County Championship.<\/p>\n
The Yorkshire board issued a statement accepting the sanctions.
\n\u201cThe CDC and ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) have today acknowledged the vast amount of work done by YCCC to overcome the cultural issues that existed within the club, which allowed racist and discriminatory behaviour to go unchallenged,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are accountable for these issues, and we accepted four amended charges as part of a continued commitment to ensure we are able to move forward.\u201d
\nBut the Yorkshire board added: \u201cWe are disappointed to receive the point deductions which affects players and staff at the club, who were not responsible for the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
ECB chief executive Richard Gould, who was not in post during the Rafiq scandal, said: \u201cThere can be no place for racism in our game, and the penalties announced by the Cricket Discipline Commission mark the end of a thorough disciplinary process.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one should have to experience what Azeem Rafiq went through in cricket, and we once again thank him for his courage in speaking out.\u201d
\nSix former Yorkshire players were previously fined by the CDC after being found guilty of using racist language.<\/p>\n
Separately, a damning report by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) last month revealed \u201cwidespread\u201d racism, sexism and classism in English cricket.<\/p>\n
The ICEC was established in 2021 following the racism scandal surrounding the treatment of Rafiq.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD July 28 (Online): Yorkshire County Cricket Club were slapped with a huge 48-point deduction in the English County Championship on Friday after admitting four charges related to the Azeem Rafiq racism scandal. Pakistan-born bowler Rafiq, 32, went public with allegations of racism and bullying […]<\/p>\n
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