Seventeen per cent of players in Australia’s regional cricket representative programs run at local, state and national levels are of South Asian heritage, according to ABC Sport. In the under-12 age group, the figure is 40 per cent for boys and 25 per cent for girls – numbers linked to Cricket Australia’s plans to diversify the game.
While the professional ranks see less than five percent of subcontinental origins, CA’s outreach has seen an expansion of South Asian participation, particularly in Melbourne suburbs such as Truganina – from 160 teams to now 420 teams in 8 years.
However, deeper issues of racism have long persisted – of which CA is not unaware. A local cricket fan carries a banner titled “Bus Drivers Vs Tram Conductors” during the final match of the Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket between India and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. In 2020–21, India pacer Mohammad Siraj was called a “brown dog” and “big monkey” in a series of racist taunts by a group of Australian spectators.
To combat racism, Cricket Australia introduced the Multicultural Action Plan, the sole purpose of which was to combat racial discrimination.
“I think first and foremost, we have to acknowledge that racism still exists in society and it hasn’t gone away,” Michael Knepper, who is behind Cricket Australia’s initiative to engage with multicultural audiences, told The Indian Express from Melbourne.
Knepper said steps would be taken to prevent racist behavior.
“It’s very simple. If we can identify and find out who has committed such an act, whatever that act is, they will be asked to leave immediately. I am politely saying, they will be removed. And that will be inside the venue. They will be part of it. … This is called a legal process where we will look at the possible banning order. So if it happens at the grassroots, it will be the same thing, we will go to the tribunal process, and likewise, if they are racist comment or remark If found, there will be some kind of sanction, whether it’s a ban or something like that, we’re taking it very seriously.”
Knepper explains why they want to tap Australia’s rapidly growing South Asian population, and when they came up with the plan.
“In the last 10 years, there has been a high level of migration. Within cricket, we are seeing more and more people of South Asian heritage or ancestry or even born in South Asia coming to our games, following cricket and becoming part of the Australian cricket family. So for us, it’s really about making sure they feel included in everything we do.
“When Covid really hit, we were redesigning our new strategic plan to better engage with multicultural and South Asian audiences within Australia to make them feel part of the sport. And from that came the Multicultural Action Plan,” he says.
Cricket Australia has also tapped students from the subcontinent to study at universities across Australia.
“We know the student population in Australia is huge, especially in Melbourne. We’ve reached out to them, and you saw the impact in the recent Pakistan game, we played the ODI at the MCG. The crowd was so young, so vibrant, so loud, A large amount of that comes from the work we do to connect with universities.
“We now have a WhatsApp group or mailing list of 40,000 students of South Asian background. So yes, spot on. It’s a key audience for us and we want to continue to connect, not just for international cricket, because you know, Pakistan or India might come once every few years. But we want to make sure that you also come to the Big Bash and become a part of Australian cricket. We want to make sure they can enjoy cricket no matter what the year is,” Knepper says.
There are also many important aspects of educating immigrants about Australian culture.
“And it’s a two-way street. We’re really trying to do it in every way to get it right. So we know that if you’re attending the games, it’s about understanding that, you know, Australian fans are generally going to watch the game with their friends, have fun, drink alcohol and celebrate. And it’s that very laid-back affair where you see it in the sun, you watch the game, and there’s that constant buzz.
“So you have Indian fans coming who want to bring instruments, they want to scream, they want to make noise, they want to create that festival-like atmosphere. And it’s making sure that those two things can coexist. And similarly, when you’re talking about grassroots cricket, or you’re talking about watching cricket, it’s about making sure that those cultures can all come together and enjoy it in a way that suits them.”
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