We need people like Michael Vaughan to step up for us in cricket’s fight against racism: Moeen Ali

By India Today Sports Desk: England all-rounder Moeen Ali has said that cricket needs people like former England skipper Michael Vaughan to step up in the fight against racism, while talking about Vaughan’s 2017 tweet for a documentary.

Speaking in a new documentary, ‘Is Cricket Racist?’, Moeen was asked about Vaughan’s old tweet that suggested Moeen should ask young Muslims if they are terrorists to help make society safer. To this, the all-rounder called his tweet silly and dumb, while insisting that cricket needs people like him to step up in the fight against racism.

“It was very silly. dumb really. We need people like him to step up for us. As Muslims, or any other faith really. And just be a bit smarter. I think he has also realised that times are changing and he has to change,” said Moeen.

In 2017, TV presenter Adil Ray asked Vaughan on Twitter if he expected Moeen to go around asking Muslims he didn’t know whether they knew terrorists in between matches. Vaughan has replied saying yes, if it helps our kids’ future and the environment become a safer place.

However, the former England skipper has apologized for his tweets and was also cleared of racism charges levelled by England Cricket Board’s Cricket Discipline Commission for comments against then-teammate Azeem Rafiq. Rafiq had made allegations against Vaughan and five other Yorkshire players, saying that he had been a victim of institutional racism at the club.

Rafiq, a player of Pakistani descent, alleged that Vaughan told him and other players of Asian origin that there were “too many of you lot, we need to do something about it” before a match in 2009. Vaughan strongly denied the allegations.

In a statement released by Vaughan on social media, he said that it has been difficult to hear about Rafiq’s experiences with racism over the past three years, adding that this process brought him on the brink of falling out of love with cricket.

Vaughan played for Yorkshire between 1993 and 2009, and was one of seven players charged by the ECB for racism. He was the only defendant who participated in the CDC hearing.