Azeem Rafiq, a former Yorkshire cricketer, apologized on Thursday for using anti-Semitic language in an exchange of messages with another cricketer from 2011.
This week, Azeem Rafiq, a player of Pakistani descent, testified before a British parliamentary committee and spoke of the discrimination he faced while at Yorkshire, saying the sport in England was riddled with racism.
Azeem Rafiq Apologized For Sending Antisemitic Messages 10 Years Ago To Ateeq Javid
Azeem Rafiq, the former cricketer whose revelations about the racism he suffered at Yorkshire has sparked a crisis in the English game, apologized Thursday after admitting to sending antisemitic messages 10 years ago. Azeem Rafiq, a Muslim, was widely praised for giving a disturbing account of the racism he suffered while playing for Yorkshire to a parliamentary committee on Tuesday.
“I was sent an image of this exchange from early 2011 today. I have gone back to check my account and it is me. I have absolutely no excuses,” Rafiq, 30, wrote in a statement on Twitter.
“I am ashamed of this exchange and have now deleted it so as not to cause further offense. I was 19 at the time and I hope and believe I am a different person today. I am incredibly angry at myself and I apologize to the Jewish community and everyone who is rightly offended by this,” said Azeem Rafiq.
The messages were exchanged with Leicestershire cricketer Ateeq Javid. Ateeq Javid was, for a while, viewed as the next top player from the Warwickshire conveyor belt that had produced Ian Bell and Chris Woakes, but, for one reason or another, he has not been able to build on his early promise.
In September 2017, it was announced that Ateeq Javid would leave Warwickshire at the end of the season to join Leicestershire on a two-year contract ahead of the 2018 season.
Azeem Rafiq Testifies And Names Gary Ballance And Tim Bresnan Among Others In Racism Case
Azeem Rafiq, a former England under-19 captain, testified through tears at a parliamentary hearing on Tuesday about his experiences of racism and bullying while playing for Yorkshire. The England and Wales Cricket Board has suspended Yorkshire from hosting international matches over its “wholly unacceptable” response to the racism faced by Azeem Rafiq, while some of the club’s sponsors are ending deals.
Azeem Rafiq went into detail about his relationship with Gary Ballance, who released a lengthy statement apologizing for using racist comments. He also discussed how, in his view, the club’s attitude towards him changed following an accusation of bullying levelled at Tim Bresnan, a former England all-rounder who moved from Yorkshire to Warwickshire ahead of the 2020 season.
However, Azeem Rafiq made clear several times that his intent was not to discuss specific misdeeds by individuals but to examine the roles of institutions in helping racism spread. Gary Ballance, Alex Hales, Tim Bresnan, Matthew Hoggard, and David Lloyd were some of the England cricketers Azeem Rafiq used racist terms.
Azeem Rafiq, the former England U19 and Yorkshire captain, revealed the experience of racism while playing in English domestic cricket left him on the brink of suicide.
Azeem Rafiq played in 38 First class, 35 List A, and 95 T20 matches representing Yorkshire from 2008-2014 and also in 2016 and 2018, where he picked up 71, 43, and 102 wickets respectively and even scored 1 ton in First Class. He played in Derbyshire on short term loan in 2011.