England batsman exposed as cricket race abuser in row tearing Yorkshire apart
Now sponsors desert club amid storm heading for Parliament
A RACISM row engulfing Yorkshire’s county cricket team was threatening to turn into a full-blown crisis last night as sponsors pulled out and an England star outed as the player accused of calling a teammate ‘P***’ admitted using the slur. Former Test batsman Gary Ballance was named in the media as the Yorkshire player who regularly called Azeem Rafiq by the insult following a leak of the findings of an inquiry into the allegations. Although the club set up an independent panel to look into the claims, it did not make its report public and, despite admitting Rafiq was the subject of racial harassment and bullying, did not take any action – putting the comments down to ‘banter’. Last night Ballance, 31, said he ‘deeply regretted’ using the slur, although he insisted
‘I regret I used the word’
it needed to be understood in the context of his ‘incredibly close’ friendship with Rafiq. ‘I am aware of how hurtful the racial slur is and I regret that I used this word in immature exchanges in my younger years,’ he added. The row over the treatment of Rafiq, who is suing Yorkshire for racial discrimination and harassment, and the failure to take decisive action following the report, threatens to cost the famous cricket club millions in lost revenue. Yesterday Emerald Publishing, which holds the naming rights to the Headingley Stadium in Leeds, said it would no longer sponsor the club, pointing to a lack of ‘serious action’ over the allegations. A spokesman added: ‘We do not tolerate any form of racism or discriminatory behaviour and the damaging effects this has.’ Brewers Tetley’s also announced it would not renew its sponsorship of the club, commenting: ‘We... firmly believe further decisive action is required.’ Yorkshire Tea said it was ending a deal which was due to conclude soon with immediate effect. A statement read: ‘We wholeheartedly believe that cricket should be a sport for everyone, but [Rafiq’s] experiences and the way the panel report has been handled don’t reflect that.’ And sports club chain David Lloyd said it would not continue its partnership with the club, citing ‘a zero tolerance policy towards bullying or discrimination’. Rafiq, 30, has claimed ‘institutional racism’ at the club left him close to taking his own life. His complaints led to an independent panel carrying out an internal probe. Its report, leaked to the sports news website ESPNcricinfo, upheld seven out of 43 allegations made by Pakistan-born Rafiq. But it is said to have cleared Ballance of wrongdoing and indeed, is reported to have accused Rafiq of using ‘offensive, racially derogatory comments’ himself when he referred to Ballance, who was born in Zimbabwe, as ‘Zimbo’. Yorkshire CCC has remained defiant, insisting the report revealed nothing that warranted disciplinary action. But there have been growing calls for senior members of the board to resign over the response to the row. Rafiq is due to give evidence before the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee on November 16. A letter from 25 Yorkshire MPs to England and Wales Cricket Board chief Tom Harrison has called for an independent inquiry into the club’s handling of the racism allegations. Ballance last night issued a statement addressing the claims. He said: ‘It has been reported that I used a racial slur and, as I told the independent inquiry, I accept that I did so and I regret doing so. ‘This was a situation where best friends said offensive things to each other which, outside of that context, would be considered wholly inappropriate. At no time did I believe or understand that it had caused Rafa distress. ‘Given my incredibly close relationship with Rafa over the years I am saddened it has come to this. Because we were such good friends and spent a lot of time together drinking and on nights out we both said things privately to each other which were not acceptable.’