Former
England captain Michael Vaughan has “completely and categorically” denied allegations
of racial discrimination against him by former Yorkshire player Azeem Rafiq, saying
he will “fight” to clear his name from the ongoing controversy.

In a coloumn
for the Daily Telegraph, Vaughan revealed he was the former player who was
implicated in the investigation after Pakistan-born Englishman Rafiq alleged
racist behavior by players and coaches at the Yorkshire County Cricket Club (YCCC).

In his allegations,
Rafiq claimed Vaughan told a group of Asian players that there were “too many
of you lot, we need to do something about it”. The alleged incident happened
during a county match against Nottinghamshire in 2009.

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“I
completely and categorically deny that I ever said those words. I have nothing
to hide. The ‘you lot’ comment never happened. Anyone trying to recollect words
said 10 years ago will be fallible but I am adamant those words were not used.
If Rafiq believes something was said at the time to upset him then that is what
he believes.”

Vaughan,
who represented Yorkshire from 1991 until his retirement in 2009, said he will “fight
until the end” to prove his innocence.

“It is
difficult to comment on that except to say it hurts me hugely to think I
potentially affected someone. I take it as the most serious allegation ever put
in front of me and I will fight to the end to prove I am not that person.”

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Vaughan
said he was “gobsmacked” that nothing was said during the match or in the 11
years since when he was asked to speak before a panel of investigators in December
2020. “Nothing at all was raised or said at the time of the game in question,
or at any stage over the next 11 years until the night before I was asked to
speak to the inquiry.”

The England
and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) banned YCCC from hosting international matches for
failing to act on former all-rounder Rafiq’s allegations of racial discrimination.
The charges were found to be true by an independent inquiry, which called the
club’s approach “abhorrent”.

This came a
day after former Yorkshire player Gary Ballance admitted to using racist language
against Rafiq.