Michael Carberry, the former England batsman, has claimed “cricket is rife with racism” and that “the people running the game don’t care about black people”.
Talking in light of the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Carberry told the Cricket Badger podcast that such an event came as no surprise to him and served as an “indicator of where life is right now”.
Reflecting on his career in cricket, Carberry suggested he “could have played on” but had tired of being seen as “the angry black man” in a sport where white people had all the power.
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“I’ve been pulled over by the police just because I’m black,” Carberry said. “What you see in Minneapolis is just a normal day. There were probably 50 to 100 cases like George Floyd’s in that month. It just so happened that this time a bystander filmed it. A lot more happens that’s not talked about.
“This slogan ‘black lives matter’… they’ve never mattered. That’s why we’re still talking about racism. Nothing has changed. It’s another day in the life of a black man.
“Cricket is rife with racism. The issue you have in cricket is, the people running the game don’t care about black people in it. Black people are not important to the structure of English cricket.
“If you look around English cricket at the moment, where the important decisions are made, name one black man in those positions? You’re talking the Andrew Strauss or Ashley Giles roles. Which black man has ever had the opportunity to make the big decisions on English cricket? Not one.
“Then scale down. Look at England head coaches. When has there been a black head coach? Never. Any black captains [in county cricket]? Yours truly for about six games [for Leicestershire]. The guy who replaced me got to do it for the whole season and lost every game.
“Look around county cricket. How many black [head] coaches are there in county cricket? Not one. I know people who are more than equipped to do the job. If I was a young black boy now, who am I looking at that can inspire me?”
“We know we have a long way to go until we are fully representative as a sport, particularly in relation to black communities. That’s why voices like Michael’s are so important and we will continue to listen, educate ourselves and face uncomfortable truths in order to create action and long-term change”
ECB statement
Carberry also suggested other non-white players had experienced similar frustrations, but chose not to mention them through fear of being portrayed as trouble-makers. And he revealed he had effectively been forced out of one county club – he declined to say which – after an altercation with a coach following racially inappropriate comments.
“If you ask Moeen [Ali] and Rash [Adil Rashid] about their issues in the game, understandably they are not going to come out and say, because they are in the set-up.
“This is the decision most people of colour have to make all the time. This thing is eating you inside every single day with what you hear in dressing rooms, what you see, the stuff people get away with and say to you.
“Can you see how unfair it is that someone has to keep accepting that stuff? I think other players who laugh it off want acceptance, they don’t want to get dropped, or put a left hook on that guy, because that guy may have a massive powerful influence in the team. If you rub that person up the wrong way, that’s you done, that’s your career done. Everything you’ve worked towards, you’re done. Things circulate. ‘Carberry’s a bit fiery. The temperamental black man. The angry black man.’
“I’ve almost come close to making a coach spit 32 [teeth] out on the ground for stuff that he said to me. He said: ‘I couldn’t see you in the dark’ and ‘What are the brothers having tonight? Bit of fried chicken and rice and peas tonight?’ I had to drag him out on the balcony. He literally hung his head like a little child. Bear in mind, I’m putting my career [on the line], and it probably ended up being the final nail in my coffin in that club. I won’t name the club.
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“Why do you think I lost my career? I could have played on. But it’s important I’m happy with who looks back at me. Maybe I didn’t play the 50 or 100 Tests people thought I should have done. But I thought it was more important to respect the man who looks back at me in the mirror.”
In response to Carberry’s comments, the ECB accepted the game has “a long way to go” and that “barriers to enjoying our sport exist”. They confirmed their commitment to the ‘Rooney Rule’ – which insists BAME candidates must be interviewed for head coaching and senior administration roles – at county level, and added that initiatives such as the 2018 Inclusion and Diversity Plan were aimed at breaking down barriers and reforming the game’s structures.
“We truly believe that cricket is a game for everyone but understand that sadly barriers to enjoying our sport exist for many communities,” the ECB said in a statement. “We know we have a long way to go until we are fully representative as a sport, particularly in relation to black communities. That’s why voices like Michael’s are so important and we will continue to listen, educate ourselves and face uncomfortable truths in order to create action and long-term change.”