At a hearing in London on Thursday, Azeem Rafiq was questioned regarding his two accounts of the claimed racist remark made to him by former England captain Michael Vaughan.
At a hearing in London on Thursday, Azeem Rafeeq was questioned regarding his two accounts of the claimed racist remark made by former England captain Michael Vaughan towards him. Rafiq, a 32-year-old Pakistani man, first made racist and harassing claims in September 2020 in relation to his two stints at Yorkshire County Cricket Club.
Vaughan’s attorney, however, cited a Wisden interview in which Rafiq quoted Vaughan as saying: “There’s too many of you bunch, we need to have a word about that” on the second day of a Cricket Discipline Commission hearing.
The second version, according to Rafiq, is the one he can recall, and he continued, “In terms of the statement, there was a clear mistake and I accept full responsibility.
“I want to emphasise that the phrase “too many of you lot,” which is discriminatory towards a group of Asian players, is very obvious. An deed is the second component. There is definitely a difference.
Christopher Stoner, Vaughan’s attorney, questioned Rafiq regarding the reason for the discrepancy, to which Rafiq responded, “I have no answer at all.”
Rafiq’s response when asked how he was certain Vaughan was the one who allegedly made the remark was, “I know what his intonation is like.”
