Ben Stokes 'Sorry' After Cricket Report Exposes Racism And Sexism

England captain Ben Stokes said Tuesday he is "deeply sorry" to learn of the scale of discrimination in the sport after a damning report revealed "widespread" racism, sexism and classism in the game. His comments followed the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC), set up by the England and Wales Cricket Board, publishing its much-anticipated report, Holding Up a Mirror to Cricket.

The commission makes 44 recommendations, including that the board makes an "unqualified public apology" for its failings. The ICEC was established in 2021 in the wake of a racism scandal centred around the treatment of Pakistan-born bowler Azeem Rafiq at English county cricket club Yorkshire.

Of the more than 4,000 individuals interviewed for the ICEC report, 50 percent described experiencing discrimination in the previous five years, with the figures substantially higher for people from ethnically diverse communities.

Women are treated as "subordinate" to men at all levels of cricket, the report found, adding that they receive an "embarrassingly small amount" of pay compared to their male counterparts.

It recommends that match fees for the men's and women's teams be "equalised with immediate effect". The ICEC report also states that not enough has been done to address class barriers in the game, with fee-paying private schools dominating the talent pathway.

'Unequivocal'

"Our findings are unequivocal," said ICEC chair Cindy Butts. "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."

England men's Test captain Ben Stokes and