GEORGE DOBELL: While the report - which took evidence from more than 4,000 people - expresses some confidence in the ECB's new leadership, it provides a crushing indictment of the current situation and previous management of the game
Cricket in England and Wales is racist, sexist and elitist, according to a long-awaited report into discrimination and inequity in the sport.
The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report was commissioned by the ECB in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and the rise in prominence of the Black Lives Matter movement. It includes evidence from more than 4,000 people, including players, coaches, administrators and spectators.
In its own words, it found that "racism is entrenched in cricket" and that "women are marginalised and routinely experience sexism and misogyny". The report describes the discrimination as structural and institutional.
"Substantial cost barriers" prevent those from lower socio-economic backgrounds progressing in the game, it says.
The report's chair, Cindy Butts, concludes: "The stark reality is cricket is not a game for everyone."
The ICEC panel consisted of Butts, Michelle Moore, Sir Brendan Barber, Dr Michael Collins and Zafar Ansari.
Their findings offer a devastating insight into the culture of the sport in this country, and are published as one of the showpiece events of the season - the Lord's Ashes Test - is just about to begin.
The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) is damning on the state of cricket's inclusivity in England and Wales [ECB]
While the report expresses some confidence in the ECB's new leadership, it provides a crushing indictment of the current situation and previous management of the game.
Among the striking statistics quoted, the report states that 87 per cent of Pakistani and Bangladeshi respondents, 82 per cent of Indian respondents and 75 per cent of black respondents to its survey reported they had experienced discrimination.
"Our findings are unequivocal," Butts, a former deputy chair of the Met Police Authority, said. "Racism, class-based discrimination, elitism and sexism are widespread and deep rooted. The game must face up to the fact that it's not banter or just a few bad apples. Discrimination is both overt and baked into the structures and processes within cricket."
Among its conclusions, the report finds that "cricket has failed black communities". It quotes a 2020 report by Sport England which found that black participation was "so low as to be statistically irrelevant; lower than in golf and tennis". And it points out there is no mention of cricket in black communities in the ECB's Inspiring Generations report of 2019, which was designed as the strategy to grow the game.
"Black cricket has been failed; there must now be a commitment to reviving it," the report states. "There is no reference to cricket in black communities in Inspiring Generations, despite its central role in English cricket in the recent past. For a 'strategy for cricket' that is described as placing 'diversity and inclusion' at its core, this is a striking omission."
The report found "it shameful that women continue to be treated as subordinate to men at all levels of cricket."
The panel concluded that "women receive an embarrassingly small amount compared to men" and were "alarmed" that England Women's team has never played a Test match at Lord's "particularly as schoolboys from Eton and Harrow have played there every year since 1805."
"The 'home of cricket' is still a home principally for men," it says.
It also railed against prohibitive costs for young would-be cricketers who may wish to embark on county and regional pathways.
"It will never be 'a game for all' at county level and above when large parts of society simply cannot afford to get their foot on the ladder and progress, no matter how talented they may be," the report states. "We are clear that cricket in England and Wales is losing talented - potentially great - players simply because of the financial barriers the game puts in their way."
ICEC chair Cindy Butts [supplied]
Elsewhere, the commission reported a lack of trust in cricketing authorities, with half of respondents saying they had experienced discrimination but only one in four reporting it. "The most common reason for not reporting incidents was a lack of trust that appropriate action would be taken to address the issue," the ICEC panel said.
Among the 44 recommendations made by the ICEC is a call for equal pay for male and female players at domestic level by 2029 and at international level by 2030.
The ICEC also called for a new regulatory body which should be "responsible for investigating alleged regulatory breaches and for making decisions about whether to bring charges". This, the report argues, should be fully independent from the ECB.
And there is a call for an end to the Eton v Harrow match at Lord's, which is seen as a symbol of elitism, to be replaced by under-15 competitions for boys and girls. The Oxford v Cambridge fixture should, in the report's opinion, also make way for a national finals day for university teams.
Meanwhile, the ICEC called for the entire talent pathway to be "overhauled to make it more meritocratic, inclusive, accountable", including the removal of direct costs by 2025. A "game-wide strategy to remove class barriers" should be implemented, it states.
The ICEC also called upon the ECB to make "an unqualified public apology for its own failings and those of the game it governs."
This, at least, the ECB were able to issue immediately.
"On behalf of the ECB and wider leadership of the game, I apologise unreservedly to anyone who has ever been excluded from cricket or made to feel like they don't belong," Richard Thompson, the ECB chair said. "Cricket should be a game for everyone, and we know that this has not always been the case. Powerful conclusions within the report also highlight that for too long women and Black people were neglected. We are truly sorry for this."
The report calls for the ECB to make a full and considered response to the proposals within its pages, within three months.
The ECB have issued an apology to "anyone who has ever been excluded from cricket or made to feel like they don't belong" [Getty Images]
Clearly the financial implications are significant, especially at a time of rising costs and largely fixed income. But Richard Gould, the ECB chief executive, did express a desire "to deliver on the intent of all of the report."
"This is a seminal moment for the sport," he said. "We hope the publication of this report will be a very important point from which the game can move forward.
"It contains information which will be a shock to many people. Am I shocked? I'm disappointed, but I'm not shocked.
"We're extremely sorry to all those who have suffered going back over many years. It is an existential issue for the sport. We're determined to make cricket the most inclusive and welcoming sport in the country. The report makes clear the extent of work needed to do that.
"We'll need to take some time to understand how we can deliver on the recommendations. But we will look to deliver on the intent of all of it."
As well as requiring fundamental changes to the game's economic model, there is also likely to be significant media and political pressure upon administrators. One way or another, the repercussions of the report are likely to be felt for years to come.
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