Last Update: February 02, 2023, 18:20 IST
Andrew Strauss. (AFP photo)
Andrew Strauss said that with players of different nationalities and ethnicities sharing dressing rooms now more than ever, cricketers have to be more careful in what they say and do.
Former England captain Andrew Strauss has urged cricketers to shun dressing room banter over racial harassment and bullying in a bid to avoid controversies such as the Azeem Rafiq episode.
The Pakistan-born cricketer, who played for county team Yorkshire for almost a decade, told the UK’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in November 2021 that racist comments and actions by fellow cricketers had made him ” close to taking”. his own life”.
Strauss, East England and Wales Cricket With players of different nationalities and ethnicities now sharing more dressing rooms than ever before, cricketers need to be more mindful of what they say and do, the Board (ECB) Director of Cricket said during his Marylebone Cricket Club Cowdrey Lecture at Lord’s on Wednesday. Have to be alert.
“As we move forward together as a sport with players of different genders, races, creeds and beliefs, so does the traditional masculine, hierarchical, perhaps at times bullying dressing-room banter of softening to a culture There will be a need for one that is more tolerant, understanding, welcoming and embracing difference,” Strauss, one of England’s most successful captains, was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.
Strauss also highlighted the importance of the spirit of cricket, saying that the events of the last year and a half – when the Azeem Rafiq scandal broke out and tarnished the image of England cricket – required a lot to be done to restore the game’s image. .
“Perhaps more importantly the spirit of cricket has to be with the modern players and I am talking mainly about the men’s game which is neither the prying eyes of the media nor the feverish applause of the fans ; dressing room,” Strauss said.
Events over the past 18 months, whether they have come from Yorkshire or elsewhere, have shown that we have a lot of work to do in this area, but the spirit of cricket demands it. McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes, Strauss said the coming together of these two has brought about a big tactical change in the way the longest format is being played.
England’s Test victories against India, New Zealand, South Africa and Pakistan last year erased the disappointment of winning just one of their 17 matches before the pair were appointed.
“The coming together of Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes last May has shaken the game of Test cricket to its foundations and asked some fundamental questions about the centuries-old accepted truths of the Test format,” Strauss said.
“Those two extraordinary leaders of men – assisted in no small part by Rob Key as Director of Cricket – have once again redefined what the game of cricket really is.” With much talk about Test cricket losing importance amid the onslaught of domestic T20 leagues across the world, Strauss hinted that the popularity of traditional rivalries such as the Ashes and series between major Test-playing nations will never go out of fashion. , although some debt-ridden national governing bodies may be at a loss. ,
Strauss said, “It is inevitable that some older institutions will crumble faster, including some debt-ridden national governing bodies and professional clubs.”
“Also, the way we see it today, bilateral cricket can be squeezed in one way or another. I firmly believe that the Test series that captured our imaginations today – the one we really look forward to – is going nowhere.”
get the latest cricket news Here
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)