Essex County Cricket Club have vowed to provide further education on cultural diversity after a Muslim player was sprayed with alcohol during celebrations of their Bob Willis Trophy success.
Batsman Feroze Khushi was photographed recoiling as beer was poured over him on the balcony at Lord’s on Sunday.
His club admitted the celebrations failed to meet their inclusive values and pledged to do more.
“Essex County Cricket Club prides themselves on their work within multi-diverse communities throughout the county and the surrounding areas,” read a statement from the county.
“For a substantial period of time, Essex have had a multi-diverse team with players from different backgrounds, religions, and races, where cricket is at the heart of these communities.
“The club has worked extremely hard and will continue to bring cricket to anybody and everybody, and educate on diversity, but further work needs to be done across both sport and society in general, to widen people’s knowledge and make them more aware of cultural differences.”
Although 21-year-old Khushi did not feature in the final, he made four appearances during the group stage.
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The incident was in stark contrast to England’s World Cup victory in 2019 when other players waited for Muslims Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid to step away before spraying Champagne.
