England spinner Rashid says Vaughan is 'talking nonsense' following Test call-up

Sport360 staff 11:29 27/07/2018
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  • Adil Rashid has hit back at Michael Vaughan following the former England captain’s criticism of his Test recall and accused his county Yorkshire of being “disrespectful” in their reaction to the news.

    Leg-spinner Rashid has been selected in the 13-man squad to face India at Edgbaston next week despite his self-imposed exile from county cricket.

    Rashid, who won the last of his 10 Test caps in Chennai more than 18 months ago, currently only has a limited-overs contract with Yorkshire having turned his back on the longer form of the game.

    The 30-year-old has not played red-ball cricket all season, but his sparkling one-day form – Rashid took 20 wickets in the recent series wins against Australia and India – has earned him a shock recall to the Test arena.

    His selection has not gone down well with Vaughan, an ex-team-mate of Rashid’s for Yorkshire, who described his selection as “stab in the back for county cricket.”

    Writing in the Telegraph, he added: “It basically says our county game, the finishing school for our cricketers, does not matter any more and that it is irrelevant.”

    Rashid, though, claimed Vaughan was “talking nonsense” and his opinions “did not matter to anybody”.

    “When I mentioned at the start of the year I will not be playing red-ball cricket, he tweeted something then,” he said in an interview with BBC Sport. “He was being controversial and saying his stupid things then too.

    Controversial comments: Michael Vaughan.

    “I don’t think he has an agenda against me. I played under and with him but sometimes ex-players come out and start talking nonsense about current players.

    “There will be people out there who are not happy. There will be haters, like the pundits who are saying it is a disgrace. That is not my fault.”

    Vaughan was far from the only critical voice. Yorkshire chief executive Mark Arthur said the county were “very surprised” by Rashid’s recall.

    The player responded by casting doubt on his future at Headingley.

    He said: “They might be disappointed for various reasons, but it would have been nice if the chief executive or head coach could have said, ‘Well done, congratulations on being selected, good on you’, as opposed to being angry and upset for not playing red-ball cricket for them, even though I told them I would not be doing so.

    “I did not do anything wrong in that sense. There is no reason for Yorkshire to react like this. It was not something I expected or wanted.

    “It would have been nice to have got the support from your county or the people close to you, but if they do not want to give their support, that is their problem.

    “I don’t need anybody’s support in that situation. I know what I want to do and achieve.

    “If I give 100 per cent and it goes well, it goes well. If it doesn’t then I will still be happy.

    “If they treat me like they have done, don’t see any value in me and are disrespectful to me, I have to think about the future in terms of which county I play for.”

    National selector Ed Smith has made it clear that in order to be eligible for Test selection next year Rashid must return to the four-day game domestically.

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