Cricket Scotland 'regrets the hurt' endured by racism whistleblower

Cricket Scotland has said it "regrets the hurt" endured by a former top cricketer who blew the whistle on racism in the sport.

The original complaint by Majid Haq led to the governance of Cricket Scotland being branded institutionally racist in a review which was published in 2022.

Haq is now an umpire in the sport and last year launched a civil legal claim against the sport's governing body for alleged victimisation after he was removed from umpiring at a Scotland international fixture.

This legal claim has now been dropped and both Haq and Cricket Scotland have issued statements about the situation.

Haq, from Paisley, and former Scotland teammate Qasim Sheikh spoke out about their experiences of racism in the game in 2022.

The subsequent review found evidence of institutional racism in Scottish cricket and highlighted 448 examples.

Cricket Scotland accepted the hundreds of recommendations made in this review in full.

The sport's governing body then hired two law firms and a race equality charity to independently investigate the racism allegations made by former players and others in the game.

BBC Scotland last year revealed that one of these investigations concluded that Haq had been victimised for speaking out and that his later career as umpire was "substantially undermined" as a result of him going public with his concerns.

A club official was convicted in 2023 for racially abusing Haq when he was umpiring a game.

Last year's civil claim was lodged after Haq was dropped from umpiring at a Scotland vs Nepal fixture, which the ex-international claimed was as a result of discrimination.

In a statement, Haq said the last 11 years "have been some of the hardest of my life".

He added: "My experiences, particularly those during my playing career, and the subsequent backlash and abuse for speaking about them has come at great personal cost to me and my family.

"By withdrawing my court action, I have committed to enabling Cricket Scotland to take the steps they've outlined in their commitments and equality, diversity and inclusion plans to make our sport inclusive and safe for all that participate.

"Nothing can change the experience of the past or restore experiences lost. I have had to learn to live with an unsought role as a figurehead for this issue with the unwanted negativity.

"I can only hope that over time that can change too, and we can all move forward together to play our role in leading cricket's growth in Scotland."

A statement from Cricket Scotland issued at the same time said the organisation "acknowledges and regrets the hurt that Mr Haq has endured".

It added: "Cricket Scotland reiterates its regret for Mr Haq's experiences and makes clear that any form of racism has no place in our sport, is entirely unacceptable and will be responded to in the strongest terms.

"Furthermore, Cricket Scotland is reaffirming its commitment to applying a zero-tolerance policy to all forms of discrimination within Scottish cricket.

"Embedding a culture of inclusivity and fostering a diverse and equitable cricketing environment where every individual can participate, enjoy, and thrive is a cornerstone of Cricket Scotland's strategic priorities."