Former Australian captain Allan Border has thrown his support behind the under-fire coach Darren Lehmann. Meanwhile, Lehmann is likely to talk publicly later today since the ball-tampering scandal broke.
An investigation led by Cricket Australia’s head of integrity, Iain Roy found that Lehmann was unaware of the plan. As a result, CA gave Lehmann a clean chit and will continue with his work until his tenure ends.
However, CA sanctioned the Australia trio of Steve Smith, David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft. While Smith and Warner will serve a 12-month ban, Bancroft got a 9-month ban.
Along with it, these three cricketers can’t lead any Australian side for the next two years. CA also ordered them to leave South Africa with 24 hrs. Tim Paine will lead the side in the remainder of the series, while Glenn Maxwell, Joe Burns, and Matt Renshaw replaced them.
“If [the] integrity officer has been through and interviewed people and he’s satisfied that Darren Lehmann didn’t know specifically what was going on at the time, I’m very relaxed,” Border told Fox Sports. “That’s a good news item, isn’t it, not the other way. “We’re talking about one of the good guys in Australian cricket,” he continued.
Meanwhile, Border feels that Lehmann has done a wonderful job with the team during his stint as the coach.
“He’s done a fantastic job with that team, and if he wasn’t aware of what was going on, there’s no problem at all,” he added.
However, another former skipper Michael Clarke feels the full story is yet to come out. Further, England’s Kevin Pietersen and Michael Vaughan expressed reservation on CA’s decision to give Lehmann a clean chit.
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LG decides not to renew David Warner sponsorship
Punishment on Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft too harsh- Michael Vaughan