Former Yorkshire cricketer Azeem Rafiq has denied allegations of racist and homophobic language levelled against him.
Rafiq sparked wholesale changes at Yorkshire after revealing the racism he had suffered during his time with the county as a player.
But it is claimed in the Daily Mail that the 31-year-old fat-shamed a group of children in a training session, repeatedly called a team-mate “Jew” and referred to an opposition batsman as a “faggot”.
In response to the allegations, Rafiq said: “They are categorically untrue. I knew as a whistleblower I would come under attack.
“What I did not expect was a never-ending, co-ordinated campaign of lies. I will not be intimidated by those who seek to silence me.”
Rafiq had previously been reprimanded by the ECB for a tweet in which he called former Derbyshire player Atif Sheikh “a Jew” for not spending money on a meal out.
But he avoided a fine as the incident was deemed “a single exchange, not part of a pattern of behaviour”.
It emerged this week that Rafiq was looking to move his wife, children and parents abroad in the coming weeks because of the abuse and intimidation he has suffered since going public with his accusations of institutional racism at Yorkshire.
