After David Warner made an explosive announcement on December 7, 2022 revealing that he was withdrawing his application for a review of his lifetime leadership ban, Cricket Australia (CA) have come up with their response to the star opener.
On the eve of the second Test against West Indies in Adelaide, Warner via his social media accounts, decried his treatment by an independent review panel commissioned to hear why he should be permitted to lead again.
CA had amended its Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel following a review conducted by the organization's Head of Integrity. This allowed Warner, who has been banned for life from leadership roles in the Australian team following his involvement in the sandpaper gate scandal in the 2018 Cape Town Test, to appeal against the ban.
But Warner announced on Wednesday evening that he was pulling out of that process, citing the panel’s decision to conduct a public hearing, despite his and CA’s preference for a private hearing.
"Regrettably, I have no practical alternative at this point in time but to withdraw my application. I am not prepared to subject my family or my teammates to further trauma and disruption by accepting a departure from the way in which my application should be dealt with pursuant to the Code of Conduct. Some things are more important than cricket,” he posted.
He also claimed the assisting counsel – who he did not name – had made "offensive and unhelpful comments" to the panel in submissions, and accused both the counsel and the panel "to some extent" of seemingly wanting the hearing to be conducted in public.
"They want to conduct a public spectacle to, in the Panel's words, have a "cleansing. I am not prepared for my family to be the washing machine for cricket's dirty laundry,” Warner added.
Responding to Warner’s post, Cricket Australia issued a statement noting that it had supported Warner's desire for the independent review to be conducted behind closed doors.
"It's there, it's in the mind"- Australia leg-spinner Adam Zampa eyes Test debut on India tour
"We are disappointed with this outcome as our intention was to give David the opportunity to demonstrate why his lifetime leadership ban should be varied at an independent hearing and we amended our Code of Conduct accordingly. We supported David’s wish for these discussions to be heard behind closed doors and respect his decision to withdraw his application,” CA stated.
"David is a very senior and highly regarded member of the Australian team who has been a great ambassador for the game as a whole since his return from a year-long ban,” Ca added.
The second Test between Australia and West Indies begins on December 8 in Adelaide.
(cricket.com.au inputs)
