Cricket-Players union admits failings in dealing with Rafiq's racism claims

(Reuters) - The Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA) had "some failings" in their handling of the allegations of racism made by Azeem Rafiq against Yorkshire county club, the union's chief executive Rob Lynch said.

Former Yorkshire spinner Rafiq, who is of Pakistani descent, testified before a British parliamentary committee in November and spoke of the discrimination he faced while at Yorkshire, saying the sport in England was riddled with racism.

The 30-year-old said the stance of the PCA had been "incredibly inept".

"We had some failings and have learnt a lot of lessons," Lynch told the parliamentary committee on Tuesday. "We applaud Azeem for his courage and bravery for being a whistleblower to create the necessary change within the game.

"PCA have offered support to Azeem throughout his career but clearly in this dispute with Yorkshire we did not meet the standards we would have wished to.

"We have apologised to him for where we went wrong. We have listened to Azeem about the issues in the game and what can be done better, and a number of changes have been introduced."

The racism scandal shook English sport and cost Yorkshire sponsors, with the England and Wales Cricket Board suspending the county from hosting international or major matches at Headingley.

(Reporting by Manasi Pathak in Bengaluru; Editing by Stephen Coates)