Yorkshire news: ECB restores right to host international matches at Headingley

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Headingley Yorkshire

Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s right to stage international matches at Headingley has been conditionally restored.

The England and Wales Cricket Board stripped the county of hosting privileges last year over their handling of racism and bullying allegations by former player Azeem Rafiq, which also led to sponsors deserting the club.

However, the ECB has been impressed by the work done to change the culture of the club since the appointment of new chair Lord Kamlesh Patel in November, and announced the conditional restoration of hosting rights on Friday.

Azeem Rafiq welcomed the ECB decision to conditionally reinstate international cricket to Headingley
Azeem Rafiq welcomed the ECB decision to conditionally reinstate international cricket to Headingley (House of Commons/PA Media)

Rafiq welcomed the news and said the ECB had made the “correct decision”.

The ECB made it clear though that Yorkshire will only be able to host the third Test against New Zealand in June and July’s one-day international against South Africa if two further conditions are met by the end of March.

The governing body says Yorkshire must “resolve the issues relating to rules changes and decisions at the club which have been subject to procedural flaws”.

This relates to the late-notice cancellation of an extraordinary general meeting of members due to take place last week, owing to a failure by the previous leadership to file rule changes with the Financial Conduct Authority.

The ECB also wants “amendments to club rules relating to the appointment and operation of the board, including removal of Graves Trust powers” to be addressed before matches can be hosted.

Members had been due to vote at the EGM on changes to club rules which would allow up to eight non-members to join Yorkshire’s board as independent non-executive directors.

Lord Kamlesh Patel has overseen major changes at Yorkshire since his appointment last November
Lord Kamlesh Patel has overseen major changes at Yorkshire since his appointment last November (Danny Lawson/PA)

The role of the Graves Trust – a major creditor of the club which is controlled by the family of former chairman Colin Graves – has been under scrutiny since another ex-chair, Roger Hutton, said it had vetoed his attempt to remove former chief executive Mark Arthur and former director of cricket Martyn Moxon over their response to the Rafiq investigation.

The ECB was satisfied that the club were committed to building a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion, had shown evidence of a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination, were committed to identifying and tackling historic cases of discrimination and to ensuring a welcoming environment to everyone.

Rafiq said: “This is the correct decision by the ECB – under Lord Patel the club has shown a real willingness to change and has already come a long way.

“His leadership has earned the club another chance, but the reforms must continue and we must see real change.”

Azeem Rafiq

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