Middlesex have been charged with misconduct for the third time in four years and face further off-field disruption after sacking the chief executive Andrew Cornish in June.
The charges brought by the cricket regulator are understood to relate to Cornish’s alleged behaviour towards another Middlesex employee, who made a formal complaint about his conduct last November.
The regulator, an independent body appointed by the England and Wales Cricket Board to run its disciplinary system in the aftermath of the Azeem Rafiq racism scandal in December 2023, charged Cornish with misconduct, and the Cricket Disciplinary Panel subsequently upheld the complaint.
As revealed by the Guardian last week, Cornish was dismissed by Middlesex in June, but the club are now facing disciplinary charges of their own. A source with knowledge of the case said the charges spanned a considerable time period. Under ECB regulations both the club and the accused individual are held liable in alleged cases of misconduct.
Middlesex have been troubled by numerous financial and disciplinary problems in recent years, and repeatedly attracted unwanted attention from the ECB.
In September 2023 the club were given a suspended points deduction and £150,000 fine by the ECB – £100,000 of which was suspended – for breaching financial regulations, including the misuse of central funding.
The suspended element of that sanction was lifted in October 2025, however, so they will not face a double punishment in this case.
Middlesex were also charged with improper conduct by the regulator in June 2024 after complaints were made about another senior employee, but this was not upheld by the CDP.
The regulator had accused Middlesex of breaching ECB directive 3.3: conduct “which is improper or which may be prejudicial to the interests of cricket, or which may bring the ECB, the game of cricket or any cricketer or groups of cricketers into disrepute.”
In addition, the club are still embroiled in a long-running legal battle with another former chief executive, Richard Goatley, who lodged a personal injury claim against Middlesex in April 2024 claiming they had been pursuing a campaign of harassment against him.
The CDP has yet to confirm details of any punishment against Cornish, who is understood to be considering his legal options, including whether to pursue a wrongful-dismissal case against the club. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Having charged Middlesex, the regulator will take the case before a three-person independent panel appointed by the CDP. Any punishment if the complaint is upheld is likely to involve a financial rather than a sporting sanction.
Middlesex and the ECB declined to comment.
