Ex-England captain Michael Vaughan accused of racism towards Asian teammates

Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan has been accused of racism by former Yorkshire teammate Azeem Rafiq. 

Rafiq recently opened a can of worms when he highlighted the systemic racism that exists in Yorkshire County Cricket Club. 

In his latest column, Vaughan revealed that he has been accused of racism towards Asian players ahead of a game against Nottinghamshire in 2009. 

“The night before I was due to give evidence, out of the blue, I was hit with the news that Rafiq alleged that in 2009, when I was still a player and before a Yorkshire match against Nottinghamshire, I had said to Rafiq and two other Asian players as we walked onto the field together that there are “too many of you lot, we need to do something about it,” said Vaughan in his column. 

He has said that the accusations have hit him hard and that he has never been accused of being a racist in his 30 years as a cricket professional. 

“This hit me very hard. It was like being struck over the head with a brick. I have been involved in cricket for 30 years and have never once been accused of any remotely similar incident or disciplinary offense as a player or commentator. That the allegation came completely out of the blue and more than a decade after it was alleged to have happened made it all the more difficult to process,” said the 47-year-old. 

Vaughan categorically denied using racist words towards Rafiq and co. and has stated that the accusations weren’t brought to his notice in the 11 years since the alleged incident happened. He has said that he has nothing to hide and that what he is being accused of never happened. 

Another accusation leveled at Vaughan by Rafiq was that he recommended Kane Williamson ahead of him when Vaughan worked as an advisor for Yorkshire. The former England captain stated that the recommendation was purely on cricketing terms. 

He also admitted that his former club, Yorkshire, has handled the racism accusations terribly and wants to be part of the process to help the club get back on its feet. 

Yorkshire player Gary Ballance, who was teammates with Rafiq, disclosed that he used racist words towards his former teammate and regretted saying it. The county took several months to investigate the racist allegations made by Rafiq and dismissed it as banter. The club will now have to give evidence in front of the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport.