It’s Not Banter, It’s Racism

Azeem’s dream was to help England win the Ashes. That wasn’t to be. But maybe, one day we’ll reflect that his legacy to the game is far greater than winning any amount of Test series. * George Dobell *Azeem has stood up to the world, spoken back against evil. He has had victories. He has failed. He extends charity to others and he says no: no to racism. Because we must be better than our worst. * Stan Grant *A principled whistleblower who stood up for what was right, Azeem has changed cricket forever. * Jennifer Robinson *Azeem’s first legacy - a legacy carved at great personal expense - was to expose how cricket works. His second gift may be to expose how this country works, too. * Jonathan Liew *Honest, open and powerful, Azeem has never been afraid at facing injustice head on, and this book is no different. It’s Not Banter, It’s Racism is a credit to Azeem and an important part of his anti-racism work. I hope many will read and understand the message at the heart of this book; that Azeem was just a young British Pakistani boy who wanted to play cricket, and he deserved so much better. * Baroness Warsi *

Azeem Rafiq is a cricketer who played for Yorkshire CCC for two stints between 2008 and 2018. In 2012 he became the first player of Asian origin to captain Yorkshire in a senior game. In September 2020, Rafiq made accusations of racism and bullying at Yorkshire and an independent report found that a number of his accusations were true. The case became a major media story in the United Kingdom. It led to a number of resignations at the club and was the subject of investigations by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee in the British parliament.