timeColin Graves’ return as Yorkshire chairman could expose a failed campaign. This has been accelerated by financial mismanagement, weak governance and leadership, and the moral failings of those who run the sport in this country and those whose money keeps it alive. There may still be time to take action, time to show some backbone, but it’s quickly passing.
In August 2020, I spoke publicly for the first time about my experience in Yorkshire. The 40 months since then have been difficult for me and the game, and the most painful part is that we seem to be right back where we started. Nothing has changed. All we have are empty words and broken promises.
I think back to November 2021, when, under intense political pressure, the England and Wales Cricket Board suspended Yorkshire’s ability to host international cricket because of its slow and unqualified response to my testimony. Over the next few hours, dozens of companies ended their relationships with the club. Nike, Yorkshire Tea Company, Tetley Brewery and Harrogate Water are among the companies to cancel their sponsorship.
Now a man who always seems to downplay the club’s problems, a man who dismissed racism as a “joke” on TV last June, a man whose family trust has been described as an “obstacle” to reform, is likely to return to Heading Lee as chairman. So where are the protests now? Where are the interventions?
My question now is to Yorkshire’s current sponsors, the big companies such as Uber Eats, Vertu Motors, NIC Services Group, Al-Murad Tiles, C&C Insurance and Sodexo, and their equipment supplier Kukri. Does Colin Graves embody your values? Is it acceptable to describe racism as a joke?
Often, companies only seem to take action when the sun shines on them. Well, make no mistake, that light will shine. Sponsors have found their moral compass before and they need to find it again because any organization that supports this is complicit. They still have time to act and leave now to stop Yorkshire turning back the clock and undoing their progress over the past three years.
As for the European Central Bank, its governing body’s anti-racist stance has been verbally exposed. Last week I read an interview with their chairman Richard Thompson, who said he thought his organization “did a good job” when asked about the Independent Commission for Cricket Fairness report. This illustrates the ECB’s attitude: it is not about action, but about perception.
All I see is self-preservation, PR schemes and throwing the can down the road. This is the kind of consistency you’d expect if the ECB’s actions were led by values rather than reputation management: the ECB criticized Graves when he described racism as a joke, but when current Durham chairman Ian When Botham decided to attack ICEC, the ECB took no action. Reported as “nonsense” and “a complete waste of money”. What message does this send to young minority players?
The ECB said it had “a zero-tolerance stance on discrimination of any kind” but has now shrugged it off as Graves remains in charge of one of the biggest and most historic counties in the game. They are good at making commitments and action plans, but not so good at action, giving the impression that those who hold the keys to change are not interested in making it happen.
I don’t think the situation is beyond their control. We know they borrowed six figures from Yorkshire at the end of last year, and if keeping Graves out and Yorkshire able to stay afloat means they will help further, then that’s what they should do. Zero tolerance means zero tolerance, not zero tolerance until it becomes too expensive.
Not that Yorkshire doesn’t have other options. On Christmas Eve, Lord Mann, former MP for Bassetlaw and current member of the House of Lords, revealed that he had proposed The Yorkshire board were linked to three people who could have helped them fund the club but they refused to even speak to them. The idea that Graves was forced upon the club and that they had no choice is absurd. In February 2023 I was told that a comeback plan had been drawn up for him. The way his return was presented was so dishonest and horrific.
I still believe everyone deserves a second chance. If Graves wants to lead the club and the game in a positive direction, he can’t just say the right things, he needs to do the right things – not just words, but actions. He must show that he has accepted what happened in the past and is prepared to take substantive action and provide clear direction now and when tough decisions need to be made in the future. It’s fair to say there’s no sign of that yet.
Since the Cricket Disciplinary Committee hearing I have been trying to rebuild my life and move on. I’m committed to this fight but I don’t just want to be an anti-racism activist, that name comes up every time racism becomes an issue in cricket. It’s impossible to put it behind you. It’s upsetting to see from a distance how little effort has been made to deliver on all the promises.
I’m still in touch with people at the club and they’re good people who want change but they’re frustrated with what’s going on. I can be contacted by parents who have been discriminated against and wronged and who need help and support. So the battle continues. There are still many questions to ask, and I am determined to ask them.
