On Friday, former England captain Michael Vaughan has said that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has dismissed the racism charges against him.
These allegations were made by the former England spinner Azeem Rafiq against Yorkshire. Vaughan’s charge against him was that he used racist or language which was discriminatory during his time in Yorkshire. The racism charges came in limelight back in February when Yorkshire released an official statement regarding this matter. But on Friday Vaughan released a statement on his Instagram which further gave more clarity on this matter. His statement read, “It has been both difficult and upsetting to hear about the painful experiences which Azeem has described over the past three years. The outcome of these CDC proceedings must not be allowed to detract from the core message that there can be no place for racism in the game of cricket, or in society generally.
As with others who have spoken about their time at Yorkshire, I can only speak of my own experiences and of my own time there. The dismissal of the specific charge that concerned me takes nothing away from Azeem’s own lived experiences. The hearing made public that Azeem and I met 18 months ago, well before the CDC proceedings came into existence.
‘I told him then that I am sorry for his unacceptable, negative experiences at the club I love and in the sport I love. We had what I thought was a really positive and constructive discussion. We shook hands with a shared intention to work together in order to create positive change in cricket. For my part, nothing has altered in that respect.’
‘There is still a job to do and I remain keen to help bring about positive change in any way that I can. Cricket has been my life,’ he added.
