ECB investigation ‘woefully inadequate’ – Vaughan lawyer

Michael Vaughan’s lawyer says the England and Wales Cricket Board investigation into whether the former England captain made an alleged racist comment in 2009 was “woefully inadequate”.

Vaughan, 48, is accused of saying “there’s too many of you lot, we need to have a word about that” to Azeem Rafiq and three other Asian players representing Yorkshire before a Twenty20 match against Nottinghamshire.

In his closing submissions to a Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) panel on Tuesday, Vaughan’s lawyer Christopher Stoner KC accused the ECB of having a “biased position”.

In reply, ECB lawyer Jane Mulcahy KC said it was “simply not true” the body has been biased in this case and it was “inappropriate” to make that allegation.

Mulcahy said former England captain Vaughan and his legal team had gone to “ridiculous lengths” to “unfairly throw mud at the ECB” in their questioning of the investigation.

She said it is “inherently probable” Vaughan made the alleged comment to Rafiq, Adil Rashid, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Ajmal Shahzad on 22 June 2009. Vaughan has repeatedly denied the allegation.

England spinner Rashid and former Pakistan bowler Naved-ul-Hasan have corroborated Rafiq’s claim.

The fourth player in the group, former England bowler Shahzad, has said he has no recollection of it happening.

Stoner said there were “inconsistencies” in the case and Rafiq’s allegation, adding that “due process” was “sent on holiday” by the ECB.

“This was prosecution from the outset,” said Stoner, who argued it was “inherently improbable” Vaughan made the alleged comment.

The CDC panel, chaired by Tim O’Gorman, will attempt to deliver their written judgements in the case of Vaughan and all the other respondents by the end of March.

The hearing at the International Arbitration Centre continues until Thursday but the rest will be conducted in private.

Vaughan livelihood ‘at stake’

Stoner said the case is “so critical” to Vaughan because “the shape of his life and his livelihood is at stake”.

In summary, he argued it is “inherently improbable” Vaughan said it given the “frailty” of human recollection, the presence of a Sky cameraman close to the huddle where it allegedly occurred, and that it “was not spoken about for 11 years after”.

Rafiq first made the claim without naming Vaughan in a Wisden article in 2020, although he said he did discuss it with others in intervening years.

Vaughan retired from playing in 2009 and went on to work as a summariser on BBC Test Match Special. He stepped back from the role in June 2022.

In her closing submissions, Mulcahy again referred to historic tweets sent by Vaughan, which he apologised for and called “disgusting” under cross-examination on Friday.

She said the tweets, two of which were sent in 2010, are “central to this case” and show it is “inherently probable” Vaughan made the alleged comment, noting he did not admit they were wrong until they were first brought to his attention in a 2021 BBC interview.

Mulcahy addressed the discrepancies in Rafiq’s evidence, whereby he alternatively claimed Vaughan said “we need to do something about it” rather than “we need to have a word about that” in an interview with law firm Squire Patton Boggs during the initial investigation.

She said there is “so little” between the two phrases “it doesn’t show any inconsistency” and insisted the ECB only needs to persuade the panel that Vaughan said the “racist element” of the alleged phrase – “there’s too many of you lot”.

However, Stoner said words are “important” and called this discrepancy one of several “red flags” in Rafiq’s evidence.

Mulcahy said a claim by former Yorkshire head of human resources Liz Neto that Rashid had been “pressured” into corroborating Rafiq’s allegation should be “discounted” and there was “no suggestion they have lied or conspired together”.

Stoner countered this is “powerful and important evidence” and Rashid’s evidence, given via video link from Bangladesh on Thursday, cannot be given any weight.

Stoner accused the ECB of initially withholding a transcript of an interview with Shahzad as an “affront to fairness” and “evidence of actual bias” on behalf of the ECB.

He criticised the ECB for not speaking to all the other Yorkshire players taking part in the match, the Sky cameraman and the umpires.

Mulcahy noted Vaughan’s team had not applied to the panel to compel Shahzad to give evidence or sought to interview the cameraman and umpires, accusing them of “cherry-picking” and making “mere conjecture”.

Rafiq ‘petrified’ of Yorkshire coach Gale

The early part of Tuesday’s proceedings heard the ECB’s evidence against Andrew Gale and Richard Pyrah, the final two of the five charged ex-players who withdrew from the disciplinary process.

Former Yorkshire head coach Gale is charged with using of two racist slurs. He denies all allegations against him.

In his evidence, Rafiq recalled how he had told then team-mate Alex Lees he was “petrified” of Gale and “shivered” when he had to stand next to him.

Rafiq alleged Gale used the first of the racist slurs, a racially offensive term in South Africa, towards him during his first-team debut in a T20 against Nottinghamshire in June 2008, joining in with Matthew Hoggard’s use of the term after Darren Gough, Yorkshire’s captain that day, forgot Rafiq’s first name and called him “Rafa”.

Hoggard has admitted using the term but denied creating it. Rafiq claims Gale continued to use the slur towards him from that date until the 2010 season ended.

Among other occasions, Gale also allegedly used a racist slur relating to Pakistani heritage when calling Rafiq “arrogant” during the lunch break of a match in September 2009, as well as using it in 2013 to refer to Mosun Hussain, a Yorkshire academy player.

The ECB’s case highlighted a now-deleted tweet containing an anti-Semitic slur Gale sent to former Leeds United head of media Paul Dews in 2010. Gale was suspended by Yorkshire and reprimanded by the ECB.

The ECB also noted the four-match ban Gale served for verbally abusing Lancashire batter Ashwell Prince in 2014.

Former batter Gale spent his entire career at Yorkshire, first as a player after making his debut in 2004, then as captain between 2009 and 2016 before ending his playing career at the age of 32 to take up the head coach role.

Gale was one of 16 members of Yorkshire staff sacked in December 2021, though he won a claim for unfair dismissal in June. After being charged, he announced on 29 June he would not be engaging in the disciplinary process.

The ECB said the panel should “draw reasonable inference” from Gale’s refusal to take part and that it is “probable” he used the language in the charge.

Pyrah accused of racial slur against Rafiq’s sister

The hearing was told Pyrah is accused of using a racial slur against Rafiq’s sister Amna during a media day at Headingley in 2014.

Rafiq claimed Pyrah used the phrase in reference to his sister’s Pakistani heritage alongside former Yorkshire team-mates Tim Bresnan and Gary Ballance.

Bresnan denies the allegation, which emerged on Wednesday. Ballance has admitted using the racist word during his time at Yorkshire.

Rafiq also claimed Pyrah used the phrase “repeatedly” about “other Asian women”, as well as other references to Asian women’s nationalities when talking about their looks.

Pyrah is also accused of using the phrase “you lot” towards Rafiq and other Asian players at Yorkshire. Bresnan and Hoggard have said they used the term but denied it had a racist connotation.

Pyrah, who spent his entire domestic career at Yorkshire from 2001 to 2015 and later became bowling coach, denies the allegations.

He was one of the 16 staff members sacked by Yorkshire in December 2021 but later won an unfair dismissal claim and agreed compensation.

He withdrew from the process on 7 February, saying it had been “badly handled”.

As part of his defence to the charge he submitted to the ECB, Pyrah said he was good friends with Rafiq and that he had “51 pages of text messages” with Rafiq that showed he had been “supportive, positive and friendly”.

Pyrah also said that he was born “into a culturally diverse area” and had friends from “all sorts of backgrounds” so “would not have used racist or discriminatory language”.

Rafiq did not dispute that Pyrah offered him “cricketing support” and said they had a “good relationship” when both were players, but this changed when Pyrah became a coach, which Pyrah did not accept.

Mulcahy said the ECB noted the messages between Rafiq and Pyrah but added that Pyrah “has no defence to the charge” and that it is “probable” he used the two racist terms in question.

The ECB also made their closing submissions against Ballance, John Blain, Bresnan, Hoggard and Yorkshire.

Yorkshire have pleaded guilty to four amended charges from the ECB and have not attended the hearing.

Former England batter Ballance, who now represents Zimbabwe, has admitted liability in response to his charge and is not participating.