Morgan: Backing racism battle is more important than winning T20 World Cup
England captain Eoin Morgan has said that helping in the fight against racism is more important than anything the team can achieve on the pitch during the Twenty20 World Cup.
“Being a part of the significant change [is something] that we feel will lead to something that will be bigger than any of our careers, or any of the trophies that we win,” Morgan said ahead of England’s game with South Africa today.
“What we do at the moment to try to achieve that, it’s not perfect, but we are making good ground towards change that we want implemented.”
Morgan said that the allegations concerning Yorkshire highlighted the need for decisive action within the sport. “In matters of an extreme or serious nature like these are, they need to be met head on,” Morgan said. “For us, as a team, that’s exactly what we want to see. The investigation’s ongoing and live at the moment so only time will tell what happens, but I think the actions by the board have demonstrated how seriously the England and Wales Cricket Board are taking how this has been handled. Yes, we want to see the sport in a great light but, equally, if there’s an issue as serious as this we want it dealt with as well.
“First and foremost, probably more so for the last two to three years, our culture has been built around inclusivity and diversity. It’s actually been quite a strong part of our game. We have been active about talking and actioning things that show meaningful change.”
England will again take a knee before their World Cup match with South Africa, and have previously worn T-shirts opposed to discrimination in all forms. Morgan said that “continuing to give that strong message” was important for the team.
“We are very serious about it. We firmly believe that there is no place in our sport for any type of discrimination, and I think the actions of the ECB board to Yorkshire have indicated how serious they are about dealing with issues like this.”
He said the team would support Adil Rashid in any way they could. Yorkshire’s report into racism named Rashid as an alleged victim of a comment from Michael Vaughan, one which Vaughan denies making.