OFFERS POUR IN FOR RAFIQ’S TELL-ALL BOOK

AZEEM RAFIQ, the whistleblower whose revelations triggered the racism scandal at Yorkshire, could be set to write a book after a number of publishers stepped forward with offers.

Should the project get off the ground, journalist George Dobell — who brought Rafiq’s claims to light — would be the author, though matters could be complicated by workloads and the ECB probe.

Last week Michael Vaughan, Matthew Hoggard, Tim Bresnan, Gary Ballance and former head coach Andrew Gale were charged by the ECB with bringing the game into disrepute following the racism allegations. The group along with Yorkshire themselves will be subject to disciplinary hearings this autumn.

THE PROSPECT of televised half-time interviews with coaches and training-ground highlight reels being aired has been temporarily placed on the backburner after the changes failed to receive the required 14 votes at the recent Premier League summit. But expect those two adjustments to eventually become part and parcel of coverage in the not-too-distant future — potentially from next season — with head of media rights delivery Paul Stringer stressing the urgency of the situation. The word is that a number of small amendments will be made and another vote is due shortly. As expected the Big Six — who prefer to flog similar content to their own commercial partners — voted against along with Newcastle and, bizarrely, newcomers Nottingham Forest. ‘It appears that Newcastle already have delusions of grandeur,’ said one official. ‘They appear to be following everything the Big Six do.’

SPORTS AGENDA readers will recall that Simon Timson, whose brainchild it was to build a national tennis academy in sunny Stirling, was well clear of the fallout when it closed down after three years as he departed the Lawn Tennis Association for Manchester City. it would appear that Timson, who is also on Andrew Strauss’s ECB review panel, is blazing a trail. The premier League champions have now taken the LTA’s head of sports science, and pal of Timson’s Dan Lewindon, to the Etihad Stadium.