Essex Cricket dealt £100,000 fine by CDC for ‘systemic racism’
Essex County Cricket Club has been fined £100,000 by the Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC), after findings of ‘systemic and longstanding racism’ at the club between 2001 and 2010.
This comes after the Cricket Regulator initially brought the charge against Essex in December 2023, following a report published by Katharine Newton KC, which cited allegations of racist abuse towards former players.
The report found that racial slurs had been used to refer to players of South Asian backgrounds, including “curry muncher” and “bomber”, after the September 11th terrorist attacks, while bananas were thrown at Black cricketers.
Essex formally admitted this charge on 10th June.
The CDC was unable to impose on-field sanctions against the club, such as point deductions, as the panel only has the authority to apply these for offences that have occurred since 2020.
Essex first launched an investigation in 2021, after former player Jahid Ahmed made allegations of racism at the club, with Maurice Chambers and Zoheb Sharif also coming forward.
A statement from Essex County Cricket Club Chair Anu Mohindru said, “There is deep regret for what occurred in the past, but these events do not reflect the Essex Cricket of today.
“The club have accepted the sanctions and remains committed to tackling all forms of discrimination, and is fully aligned with the ECB’s goal of making cricket the country’s most inclusive team sport.
“We have made significant progress in achieving these aims in the communities we represent through our excellent outreach work, as well as building a workplace that values and respects every individual. Essex Cricket will continue to move forward as the best open, inclusive, and diverse organisation we can possibly be.”
Essex now becomes the second county cricket club to be sanctioned for allegations of racism, after Yorkshire were docked 48 points and received a fine of £400,000 last July, after the scandal involving former player Azeem Rafiq.
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