The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report highlights a number of challenges for the game, which marks a major turning point. My ambition is to become one of our country’s most inclusive sports, and I believe it is achievable.

Race, class, and gender all need to be addressed. It has already begun, and the ICEC report will accelerate meaningful change.

I am most interested in this part. In my many years of involvement in the game, I have observed and experienced first hand a variety of challenges. I have also seen how barriers can be overcome. My goal is to make a tangible impact and get to tangible actions.

Cricket is not the only sport that faces similar challenges, but also other sports. Cricket has the potential to be a role model for how a sport can become more inclusive if it can get the next phase right.

The ACE Programme was founded by me because I felt more needed to be done for Black-British cricket.

In the beginning, we analyzed data across the country, from grassroots to performance levels, and found that numbers were dismal. Black-British participation was on the verge of extinction except for a small bubble in London.

Cricket was not on children’s radars, because there was a pervasive narrative that they were only interested in football. The opposite was true. Cricket interest was there, but access was limited.