Yorkshire vote in reforms to pave way for England internationals at Headingley

Structural reforms at Yorkshire CCC were approved by the club’s members on Thursday night which paves the way for Headingley to stage England matches this summer.

At an extraordinary general meeting, the governance changes ordered by the England and Wales Cricket Board, following Yorkshire’s mishandling of ex-player Azeem Rafiq’s racism claims, were voted through.

“The Members of Yorkshire County Cricket Club tonight overwhelmingly passed three special resolutions at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held in the Long Room at Headingley,” a statement read.

“The club can now continue to drive the right approach through essential governance reforms and meets conditions set by the England and Wales Cricket Board for the return of international and major matches at their ground.”

Hosting international matches provides a significant chunk of Yorkshire’s revenue but that privilege was suspended last November by the ECB after Rafiq’s testimony to a parliamentary committee about the racial abuse he suffered in his two stints at the club between 2008 and 2018.

Roger Hutton and Mark Arthur stepped down as chair and chief executive respectively while a total of 16 members of staff, including first-team head coach Andrew Gale and director of cricket Martyn Moxon, were removed from their roles.

Lord Kamlesh Patel was installed as new chair and tasked with overseeing wholesale cultural and structural changes, while former Yorkshire and England fast bowler Darren Gough has filled Moxon’s position on an interim basis.

The ECB last month announced the club’s international rights would be restored on the proviso of conditions being met, including “resolving the issues relating to rule changes and decisions at the club” and the