Mehmooda Duke steps down as Leicestershire chair with ECB braced to unveil 12-point inclusion plan

GEORGE DOBELL - EXCLUSIVE: Already confirmed to leave the club in March 2022, Duke resigned just hours before the governing body is set to release the details regarding its action plan in response to the ongoing racism scandal

Cricket’s attempts to present a more diverse face have sustained another blow with the resignation of Mehmooda Duke.

Duke, the only female chair around the first-class counties and one of only two people of colour in such roles, had been due to step down from the role at Leicestershire in March 2022. It is understood by The Cricketer, however, that she has resigned with immediate effect, taking a thinly veiled swipe at ECB chief executive Tom Harrison in the process by calling for “fresh leadership at national level.”

The news will come as something of an embarrassment to the ECB. They are planning on announcing a 12-point plan aimed at encouraging greater inclusion within the game on Friday which involves a commitment to greater diversity in leadership positions across the sport. To lose a well-respected chair who represents two poorly catered for demographics on the verge of such an announcement is a significant blow.

Duke declined to elaborate to The Cricketer on her reasons for stepping down. It seems inevitable, however, that the timing of her move will raise eyebrows and be interpreted as disapproval of the ECB’s handling of the issue.

Upon the decision being confirmed by Leicestershire, she said: “It has been a tremendous honour to be part of the impressive family which makes up LCCC.

"I wish all of my colleagues on the board and across the network, the players, staff and the community teams, all the very best for the future. I thank the Members, supporters, and sponsors for their unwavering loyalty to the club and especially during some difficult times.

^{Leicestershire chair Mehmooda Duke has resigned, three months ahead of her intended departure}

Mehmooda added: “Cricket has been torn apart by recent events and I am deeply saddened by the hurt felt by individuals within our game.

“With fresh leadership at national level and with a determination to learn from the recent past and move forward, I hope that racism and discrimination will be expunged from the dressing rooms, the fields, and the game as a whole, allowing us to celebrate the diversity which makes cricket and sport in this country so great”.

While the ECB had originally hoped to announce their inclusion plans on Wednesday, they have now been delayed until Friday. That is not thought to reflect widespread disagreement within the game. It seems more likely, the ECB were keen to avoid a clash with Tracey Crouch’s calls for an independent football regulator and taking the time to improve the drafting of some areas of the plans.

In essence, they have changed little since they were first revealed by The Cricketer at the end of last week. There will be some allowance for clubs to take a little time to reach a few targets – there was concern there could be wide-scale redundancies if there was an overnight demand for 20 per cent representation of non-white coaches on every staff – and an understanding that several counties will need to ratify changes at AGMs which are generally held in March and April.

But other initiatives – such as the rollout of EDI education – could start within three weeks and there is generally a strong amount of consensus across the game that change was overdue. While the revelations from Yorkshire were, initially at least, seen as aberrational in the sport, those from Essex appear to have convinced the counties that these issues traverse the English game.

Other changes may follow in the coming months. In particular, there is a growing appreciation that, in a sport with a billion-pound broadcast deal, it is incongruous that volunteers continue to make many of the key decisions.

^{The ECB are due to outline cricket's inclusion action plan this week}

As one figure pointed out to The Cricketer: “More than half the attendees at Friday’s ECB meeting were volunteers and most of those paid their own travel costs.”

In time, it seems likely that county board members will receive modest stipends (perhaps £2,000 a year for most and £10,000 a year for chairs) in return for taking-on roles with better-defined requirements and targets.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that Ron Kalifa is expected to chair the nominations committee assembled to appoint the next ECB chair. Kalifa, whose background is in e-commerce, had been seen as one of the favourites to replace Ian Watmore, who stood down recently, but as chair of the nominations committee can effectively be ruled out of the running.

Richard Thompson, the Surrey chair, is the popular choice among many of the first-class counties but currently feels that his main career – he is chair of M&C Saatchi – demands more time than would make the ECB role viable. Alan Dickinson might be considered a likely compromise candidate, while with Baroness Valerie Amos is another strong candidate from within the current board.

It is also anticipated that, sometime in 2022, the ECB’s CEO Tom Harrison will step aside. Johnny Grave (the Cricket West Indies CEO), Wasim Khan (who recently stood down as CEO of the PCB) and Guy Lavender (the MCC’s CEO) might be considered favourites to replace him, but Warren Deutrom (Cricket Ireland’s CEO) and Lisa Pursehouse (Nottinghamshire’s CEO) might be other strong contenders. 

Main image courtesy of Leicestershire CCC

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