Yorkshire and a number of individuals associated with the club have been charged following an ECB investigation into racism and other allegations of misconduct at Headingley.
The charge levelled at the club, which was being investigated following criticism by the governing body last November, regards its handling of Azeem Rafiq’s whistle-blowing on racism dating back to 2020.
An independent panel of the Cricket Discipline Commission will this autumn hear the charges of alleged breaches of ECB directive 3.3 of the sport’s code of conduct, which relates to actions considered to be improper or which may be prejudicial to the interests of cricket or which may bring the ECB, the game of cricket or any cricketer into disrepute.
Seven people have been charged after an ECB investigation into allegations of racism at Yorkshire
A statement read: ‘The ECB’s investigation has been thorough and complex, with the allegations covering a significant period of time and a number of witnesses and other individuals coming forward to share their own experiences and allegations.
‘The ECB is grateful to all those who have taken the time to speak with the investigating team.’
The statement continued: ‘In matters of this nature, our normal practice is not to identify individuals charged at this stage. This decision is taken on a case-by-case basis. It is however standard practice for the CDC disciplinary panel to publish its decisions and written reasons in full following the hearing.’
It is anticipated that the hearing will take place in September or October.
The investigation was prompted by allegations of racism made by former player Azeem Rafiq
In a statement, released by his representatives, ex-England Under-19 captain Rafiq said: ‘I welcome today’s announcement by the ECB and hope we can move to the hearing quickly.
‘This has been another gruelling but unfortunately necessary process. It has been a long two years since I went public about my experiences, but I hope this all means that no young player ever goes through such pain and alienation again.
‘My preference would be for this hearing to take place publicly, but I am hopeful that we are at least nearing a point where there will be some sense of closure for my family and me.’
