English cricket authorities accused of lacking ‘moral backbone’ for failing to call out Ian Botham for comments on racism report

The England and Wales Cricket Board has been accused of “lacking moral backbone” for not criticizing the “untruths” of former player Ian Botham, who described a report into discrimination in the sport as “nonsense.” (Reuters/File Photo)
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Updated 21 February 2024
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English cricket authorities accused of lacking ‘moral backbone’ for failing to call out Ian Botham for comments on racism report

  • Former England all-rounder Botham said he had not been asked to contribute to the 300-page Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket

LONDON: The England and Wales Cricket Board has been accused of “lacking moral backbone” for not criticizing the “untruths” of former player Ian Botham, who described a report into discrimination in the sport as “nonsense.”

The report was commissioned when English cricket was hit by a racism scandal in 2020 after former Yorkshire player Azeem Rafiq said he had been a victim of racial harassment and bullying during two spells at Yorkshire County Cricket Club from 2008-18.

Former England all-rounder Botham, who is considered one of the game’s icons, said he had not been asked to contribute to the 300-page Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, which was published last June. The report concluded that cricket in England had major problems with racism, sexism and elitism.

“No one’s interviewed me, no one asked me for my thoughts on it,” Durham CCC Chairman Botham said last year. “I don’t know of anyone that was asked and interviewed before this report was put together.”

Botham also said that upon reading the report he disagreed so strongly that he threw his copy on the floor.

At a UK Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee on Tuesday, the ICEC Chairwoman Cindi Butts said she was disappointed with the ECB for not distancing itself from Botham’s remarks, and refuted his claims that he had not been invited to contribute to its findings.

“I was disappointed the ECB didn’t call out Lord Botham,” Butts said.  “As chair of a first-class county, his words carry weight. The ECB didn’t see fit to come out and actually say ‘This is wrong.’

“I think that not only did they stay quiet, they resisted calls from stakeholders and people who were concerned about Lord Botham’s comments and they chose to stay silent. They should have had a moral backbone on this issue.

“We did invite Lord Botham to give evidence to us. He didn’t respond. The county which he chairs, Durham, contributed to our call for written evidence and we thank them for that.

“He said he didn’t know anybody who had contributed to our report when, in fact, a number of well-known named cricketers such as Heather Knight, the England women’s captain, responded and gave evidence to us. So, there are a number of untruths that he spoke about the report.”

Butts also said Botham’s comments were particularly disappointing considering his friendship with Black sporting icon and West Indies legend Viv Richards.

She added: “I was personally disappointed, not least because (Botham is) a sporting hero of mine. In fact, I would say the impact that Lord Botham had on me as a young working-class woman growing up in Shepherd’s Bush was really quite profound, to see his blossoming relationship with his arch-rival Vivian Richards.

“Richards (was) fiercely Black and consciously Black; (Botham) was the archetypal working-class white man and able to bridge those divides. To me, that spoke to the power of sport and the power of cricket, so I was personally disappointed at (Botham’s comments).”

Also on Tuesday, Yorkshire CCC Chairman Colin Graves, whose previous tenure from 2012 to 2015 covered the period when Rafiq was racially abused, admitted he had not apologized to the former player for his ordeal at the club.

Graves, who “personally and unreservedly” apologized to victims of the scandal in a statement issued last month, said he “didn’t think it was appropriate” to apologize personally to Rafiq and that he “just had plenty of things going on.”


Sinner wins in return from doping ban before home crowd at Italian Open

Updated 5 sec ago
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Sinner wins in return from doping ban before home crowd at Italian Open

The top-ranked player made a solid return from his three-month doping ban by beating 99th-ranked Mariano Navone 6-3, 6-4
“Amazing feeling. I have waited quite long for this moment,” Sinner said

ROME: After a wait of more than 100 days, Jannik Sinner still knows how to win a tennis match.

The top-ranked player made a solid return from his three-month doping ban by beating 99th-ranked Mariano Navone 6-3, 6-4 before an adoring home crowd at the Italian Open on Saturday.

It was Sinner’s first match since he won his third Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January.

“Amazing feeling. I have waited quite long for this moment,” Sinner said. “I am very happy to be back.”

There weren’t too many signs of rust and it didn’t take long for Sinner to start crushing his groundstrokes on or near the lines. When the Italian broke for 3-1 in the first set, the crowd inside Campo Centrale sang “Ole, ole, ole, Sin-ner, Sin-ner.”

Many fans in the soldout crowd of 10,500 were dressed in orange, Sinner’s theme color. And there were plenty of signs that said “Bentornato Jannik” (“Welcome back Jannik”).

The victory extended Sinner’s winning streak to 22 matches, dating to October.

“It went very well at times,” he said. “Could be better, yes, but in any case it doesn’t matter about the result today. It has been a remarkable day for me.”

In February, Sinner agreed to the three-month ban in a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency that raised some questions, since it conveniently allowed him not to miss any Grand Slams and come back at his home tournament.

The settlement was made after WADA appealed a decision last year by the International Tennis Integrity Agency to fully exonerate Sinner for what it deemed to be an accidental contamination by a banned anabolic steroid in March 2024.

Many fellow pros feel Sinner was treated too lightly.

But the crowd at the Foro Italico night session was fully behind Sinner, who has remained Italy’s most popular athlete despite his suspension.

When Sinner unleashed a backhand approach winner up the line early in the first set — the game in which he eventually broke Navone’s serve — one Sinner fan yelled, “Destroy him.”

Another sign in the crowd translated to “Make our hearts beat.” One more referred to this week’s election of a new pope just down the road at the Vatican, joking that “After three months of conclave, Habemus Papam!” — using the Latin words that are announced from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica when a pope is elected.

“The crowd was incredible,” Sinner said. “They always give me strength to continue even in tough times. So it was a very, very special moment.”

His only real lapse came late in the second set when he failed to consolidate a break and dropped his serve. But he broke again in the next game and then served the match out.

Sinner hit twice as many winners as Navone, 21-10; but had more unforced errors, 24-19.

“It’s very difficult to have the right feedback when you don’t have any matches,” Sinner said. “But exactly that’s what I need. Now I think the best practice is the match itself.”

Sinner will next face 93rd-ranked Dutch qualifier Jesper De Jong, who beat 25th-seeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-0, 6-2.

The last Italian man to win the Rome title was Adriano Panatta in 1976.

Swiatek loses to Collins
In the women’s tournament, three-time champion Iga Swiatek was beaten by Danielle Collins 6-1, 7-5. The third-round loss marked Swiatek’s earliest defeat at a big WTA event in nearly four years.

Swiatek, the top clay-court player on the women’s tour, was coming off a lopsided loss to Coco Gauff in the Madrid Open semifinals last week. She has 15 days to rediscover her form before the French Open starts on May 25.

Swiatek has won four of her five Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros.

Bayern Munich celebrate Bundesliga title with last home win for Thomas Müller

Updated 25 min 8 sec ago
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Bayern Munich celebrate Bundesliga title with last home win for Thomas Müller


BERLIN: Thomas Müller led Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga title celebrations after helping the team beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-0 in his last home game for the club on Saturday.

After being presented with the trophy, Bayern captain Manuel Neuer gave it to Müller to hoist toward the Munich sky and start the confetti-filled celebrations.

There was another outpouring of emotion when Harry Kane got his chance to lift the “salad bowl” — it’s the England captain’s first team trophy after a career of near-misses.

Bayern won the title last weekend and Michael Olize made sure of this win by scoring one goal and setting up the other for Kane’s league-leading 25th of the season to get the party underway in Munich.

Relegation decided
Bochum and Holstein Kiel were relegated while Leipzig’s hopes of Champions League qualification were over after drawing at Werder Bremen 0-0.

Last-placed Bochum lost at home to Mainz 4-1, and Kiel lost at home 2-1 to Freiburg, which consolidated fourth place and were well-placed for Champions League qualification.

Leipzig’s scoreless draw in Bremen left them four points behind Freiburg with one round remaining, meaning they can no longer qualify for Europe’s lucrative premier competition.

Neither Bochum nor Kiel have any possibility of catching third-from-bottom Heidenheim following the latter’s 3-0 win at Union Berlin. Heidenheim made sure of at least a relegation playoff place.

With one game left to play, Bochum had 22 points, Kiel 25, and Heidenheim 29 – just two behind St. Pauli, which had two matches remaining. St. Pauli play their penultimate match at third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.

Bochum needed to avoid defeat and hope for a favor from Union against Heidenheim at the same time. But Mainz were 3-0 up before Bochum scored. Mainz confirmed Bochum’s seventh demotion from the top division.

Bochum were promoted to the Bundesliga as the second division champion in 2021, ending an 11-year absence from the top division.

Bochum defeated Bayern 3-2 away in March, but they were Dieter Hecking’s team’s only win in their last 11 games.

“I’ve been relegated before, it’s anything but nice. You could see it with the lads, tears were flowing,” Bochum captain Maximilian Wittek said. “It’s among the worst things that can happen in football.”

Kiel also gone
Kiel were promoted for the first time only last season and coach Marcel Rapp’s team have quickly returned to the second division.

Kiel scored first but Johan Manzambi equalized before the break and Lucas Höler headed Freiburg toward the Champions League.

Freiburg moved four points clear of Borussia Dortmund, which visit Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday for Xabi Alonso’s last home game as Leverkusen coach. A Leverkusen win would send Freiburg to the Champions League.

Later, Hamburger SV had the chance to be promoted back to the division with a win at home against Ulm in the second division. Thousands of blue-clad fans greeted the team bus on its way to the stadium with songs, flags and flares.


Lazio snatch last-gasp draw with Champions League rivals Juve

Updated 10 May 2025
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Lazio snatch last-gasp draw with Champions League rivals Juve

  • Igor Tudor’s team are level on 64 points with Lazio in fifth
  • Randal Kolo Muani netted Juve’s goal in the 51st minute

ROME: Matias Vecino snatched a precious 1-1 draw for Lazio against 10-man Juventus with a stoppage-time equalizer in an enthralling battle between top-four rivals.

Uruguayan Vecino tapped home from close range after a miraculous Michele Di Gregorio save from Valentin Castellanos to spare Lazio from what would have been a painful defeat.

Juventus, who played for over half an hour with 10 men after Pierre Kalulu was sent off for striking out at Lazio striker Castellanos, stay fourth.

But Igor Tudor’s team are level on 64 points with Lazio in fifth, with sixth-placed Roma a point behind ahead of their clash at Atalanta on Monday night.

Randal Kolo Muani netted Juve’s goal in the 51st minute at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, his seventh goal in Italy’s top flight since signing on loan from Paris Saint-Germain in January.

Juve thought they were set to win when they survived a penalty scare moments before Vecino’s leveller, when Di Gregorio brought down Castellanos who was then ruled by VAR to have been offside.

But Vecino stepped up to save a point for Lazio and leave the fight for the final two Champions League spots firmly in the balance.


Man City’s surprising draw at Southampton throws Champions League hopes into doubt

Updated 10 May 2025
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Man City’s surprising draw at Southampton throws Champions League hopes into doubt

  • It could prove to be two crucial dropped points for third-placed City
  • Haaland’s return after a six-week absence because of injury couldn’t inspire City

LONDON: Manchester City’s Champions League qualification ambitions were thrown back into doubt on Saturday after a surprising 0-0 draw at already-relegated Southampton, the Premier League’s last-placed team.

It could prove to be two crucial dropped points for third-placed City in a six-team race for the four remaining spots to get into the Champions League, along with champion Liverpool.

Even Erling Haaland’s return after a six-week absence because of injury couldn’t inspire City, which dragged themselves into a better position in the league on the back of four straight wins.

City had two points more than Newcastle and Chelsea — who meet at St. James’ Park on Sunday — and four more than Nottingham Forest, which host already-relegated Leicester on Sunday.

Seventh-placed Villa were a further point back and visit Bournemouth later Saturday.

City’s unprecedented four-year reign as champion was ended by Liverpool this season.

The draw lifted Southampton onto 12 points — one more than the lowest ever points haul in a single season, set by Derby County in 2007-08.


Harley-Davidson to launch racing series with MotoGP in 2026

Updated 10 May 2025
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Harley-Davidson to launch racing series with MotoGP in 2026

  • Riders will be given race-prepared Harley-Davidson Road Glide bagger motorcycles
  • The 12-race series will run at six Grands Prix on the MotoGP calendar

PARIS: Motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson and MotoGP announced a new global racing series on Saturday which will launch in 2026, with teams riding bagger motorcycles at Grands Prix in Europe and North America.

Riders will be given race-prepared Harley-Davidson Road Glide bagger motorcycles, which are touring-style bikes designed for long-distance riding.


The 12-race series will run at six Grands Prix on the MotoGP calendar and the grid is expected to have six to eight teams with two riders each.

“This is a bold new step for Harley-Davidson’s global racing ambitions,” Harley-Davidson CEO Jochen Zeitz said in a statement.

“With this new series, we’re excited to bring a new form of racing to the world stage.”

The teams will be supported by Harley-Davidson Factory Racing.