Ashes 2023: MCC Members involved in long room incident could potentially face 'Lifetime Ban'

MCC members involved could potentially get a lifetime ban following the racial abuse incident that took place in the historic Lord's Long Room.

According to a recent report, the incident that occurred in the Lord's Long Room, involving the suspension of MCC members, could potentially result in a lifetime ban for them. This altercation is widely regarded as one of the most disheartening moments in the history of cricket. It all began with the contentious dismissal of England's Jonny Bairstow by Australia's wicketkeeper Alex Carey during the second Ashes Test.

Unfortunately, the situation escalated further when members of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) present in the long room verbally abused the Australian players as they made their way to the dressing room for lunch. The situation took an even uglier turn when Australia opener Usman Khawaja claimed that he was subjected to racial abuse by the MCC members.

In response to Khawaja's complaint, the MCC took immediate and stringent action, suspending the three implicated members. Numerous officials and former cricketers have expressed their disappointment regarding this incident. Recently, the Sydney Morning Herald released a report suggesting that all the accused members could face a permanent ban. The report will consider a comprehensive analysis provided by the Australian security manager, as well as the testimonies of other eyewitnesses.

"Identify and kick them out. There are lots of members who would never do that and lots waiting in the wings to take their spots if they won't appreciate them," SMH quoted a member as saying. "It's literally written in the rules that you can't do that. Don't abuse players and in particular don't pick out the bloke who of all the Aussie team seems the nicest one and hasn't done anything ever to upset anyone," the member added.

The MCC chairman had stated earlier that the members who verbally abused Australian players during the second Ashes Test at Lord's have brought "shame" on the institution.

"The members shown on camera have brought shame on MCC. Their actions hinder our efforts to promote the positive things our club does to promote and celebrate the game of cricket," chairman Bruce Carnegie-Brown said in an email to members.