Azeem Rafiq might have lost a career to racism, but his crucial legacy is playing out in real time

GEORGE DOBELL IN WESTMINSTER: By insisting his story was heard, Azeem would appear to have shocked the game out of its slumber on this issue

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"Give God a laugh," they say. "Tell him your plans."

Azeem Rafiq could reflect ruefully on that old expression. Anyone who saw him representing Yorkshire a decade or so ago might well have presumed he had a great future in the game. Indeed, checking some old pieces of my own, I see I predicted he could, in time, replace Graeme Swann as England’s first-choice spinner.

It wasn’t to be. Perhaps precisely because he suffered racist abuse (Yorkshire doesn’t sound like an especially nurturing environment for players of Asian heritage, does it?) he lost his way as a player. Aged 30, when he should probably be somewhere near his peak as a cricketer, he runs a fish and chip shop. It is, by all accounts, a thriving business, but it still seems a bit of a waste.

But, as Azeem himself pointed out during the DCMS hearing, maybe a different narrative had "been written" for him. For whatever he achieved on the pitch – and let’s not forget he was Yorkshire’s youngest ever captain and first of Asian background; he achieved plenty – it seems his real legacy is being played out before us at present.

There were many chastening moments during Azeem’s testimony. In particular, hearing him talk of carrying his dead son from "hospital to graveyard" was harrowing. He referred to the treatment he received from the club at the time as "inhuman". Suffice to say, as he grieved, he was released from the staff.

But good can come from this. And by insisting his story was heard, Azeem would appear to have shocked the game out of its slumber on this issue. Because by forcing the ECB, Yorkshire and the PCA to confront not just his experiences but their own failings, he has prompted them to improve. His example has also encouraged others with similar histories to come forward. He wants to be, he says, the "voice of the voiceless". Early evidence suggests his story is the tip of a very large, very ugly iceberg.

People will know, by now, the names of many of Azeem’s tormentors at Yorkshire. They make, by a large, a grim who’s who of Yorkshire cricket in the last 20 years or so. Some, such as Matthew Hoggard, have already reached out to apologise for their behaviour – Hoggard did so long before any report was planned, too, suggesting a genuine sorrow rather than any cynical attempt to save his skin – while others now have an opportunity to do so. We rehabilitate muggers and murderers. Hopefully there is a way we can rehabilitate those who have indulged in racist behaviour, too. If they show an inclination to learn and change, anyway.

The name of Joe Root also cropped up and might be a more useful example to reflect upon. Root is, by Azeem’s own estimations, a "good man" who was never heard to utter a racist word. He has also, quietly, made various inclusive gestures (such as correcting Shannon Gabriel when he used a homophobic expression) in the past. There’s a lot to admire in Joe Root.

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Azeem Rafiq gave evidence to MPs on Tuesday

But, as far as Azeem is concerned, there were times when Root looked the other way. As far as Azeem is concerned, Root was present at times when other teammates called him a 'P**i' but did nothing to intervene.

He does not necessarily dispute that Root may not recall these moments. Just as he does not dispute that Michael Vaughan may not recall saying: "There are too many of you lot". But just because those moments were not important to them, does not mean they didn’t leave permanent scars on Azeem. As he put it: "good people who are not racist want to look the other way".

If we’re honest, many of us will accept we have behaved like Root at times. We might have turned a deaf eye to a chant at a football match or pretended we didn’t hear the new partner of a friend make a racist comment. On a larger scale, the game has done the same.

It’s looked the other way as the extent of the problem was too big – and awkward – to confront and, perhaps, because it hardly effected the almost entirely all-white management teams. That cannot be acceptable anymore.

"We can all take inspiration... Our own interventions – however small or uncomfortable they may seem at the time – can make a difference. None of us can look the other way anymore"

There are more encouraging examples out there. Rob Key, for example, is understood to have come down hard and fast on a player – an overseas player, as it happens – who is believed to have said something racist at Kent. In doing so, he ensured such talk could never take root and ensured the culture of the dressing room remained inclusive.

Equally, Ashley Metcalfe, another former player, is understood to have defended a young Asian player who was being racially bullied in the Yorkshire dressing room, while Graeme Hick, at the time a vastly respected senior player, offered to move his own kit to ensure Moeen Ali, then a young player at the club, had a place to pray at Worcestershire.

We can all take inspiration from such examples. Our own interventions – however small or uncomfortable they may seem at the time – can make a difference. None of us can look the other way anymore.

Nobody should make the mistake of thinking Azeem’s experiences are unique. It is becoming increasingly clear, from dozens of calls from other former players, that non-white players have largely suffered in silence for years. Partly because they don’t want to be labelled as trouble-makers and partly because they have almost no faith in the bodies charged with representing them, they have stopped reporting casual or structural racism. The experience was simply too demanding and too painful to undertake for the lack of reward.

The PCA have to take some responsibility here. They are, without doubt, a well-meaning organisation who do some great work in educating young players and rehabilitating some of those in need. But on this issue, the issue of racism in cricket, they have become almost irrelevant. Azeem described the PCA’s stance in his case, where they seemed reluctant to get involved as they had members on all sides, as "incredibly inept". It may help if they employed even one non-white member of staff.

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Yorkshire have apologised to Rafiq

Azeem’s increasingly assured performance in front of the DCMS committee – also an all-white group, it might be noted – was in stark contrast with those of others involved in this case. While Roger Hutton made a few pertinent points – not least that the Colin Graves trustees effectively prevented him from sacking the club’s director of cricket, head of HR and chief executive – he also demonstrated why he was not the man to force through change at the club. He was, in short, too weak.

Still, he did make the point that if Yorkshire were to be rid of Graves – and his 4.85% interest repayment rate – for once and all, they could refinance their debt to his trusts (now around £15m) with a bank. It should be a priority of the new management.

But Tom Harrison endured another painful afternoon. Again, his intentions in this area are no doubt honourable. But he seemed just a little bit reasonable, just a little bit ineffectual and just a little bit impotent that it was hard to have confidence in his ability to lead the change. For that’s the key question here: is Harrison the person to improve things? He gave an unconvincing case for that in this performance. Perhaps we all need to be a little bit less patient, a little bit less reasonable and a little bit more angry on this subject.

Make no mistake, either, when considering how much Azeem has suffered during this process. He is exhausted. He has felt excluded. He is grieving both a lost child and a lost career. He received his latest death threat – a guy coming into his fish and chip shop (which he joint owns with Adil Rashid) and threatening to detonate a bomb – as recently as Friday. It’s unfortunate, then, that the DCMS briefly published his home address at the top of his statement following the hearing.

What happens next? Well, there will be more testimonies from more players who have suffered racist abuse. This will, no doubt, be painful. But it’s essential we go through it to understand the extent of the problem and ensure we can bring about change. It might not always feel like it over the next few weeks, but Azeem’s intervention really could prove to be a turning point for our game. If we don’t make it more inclusive as a result, we will have missed a golden opportunity.

All of us who love cricket – even those who just value inclusivity – may well look back on this episode and conclude we have much to thank him for. 

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Azeem Rafiq gives testimony to MPs

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