Tim Paine has abruptly stepped down as Australia Test captain, effective immediately, over a past sexting exchange with a former female colleague less than three weeks before the Ashes 2021-22 against England.
In an emotional press conference at the Blundstone Arena in Hobart on Friday (November 19), Paine announced his decision to quit Test captaincy following the emergence of an investigation by Cricket Australia (CA) into him sending explicit messages to a female co-worker at Cricket Tasmania in 2017.
The wicketkeeper-batter was in tears when he announced his resignation after he was named in a News Corp report as being at the center of the case. However, the Aussie will remain available for selection for the upcoming Ashes series, starting on December 8 in Brisbane.
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Meanwhile, Cricket Australia (CA) accepted Paine's resignation and will now look ahead to appointing a new Test captain ahead of the upcoming Ashes series (2021–22) against England at home.
Notably, CA had investigated Paine's matter 4 years ago and he was cleared by the board and Cricket Tasmania, but the re-emergence of the investigation has forced the keeper to quit the Test captaincy.
In her correspondence with CA, the woman stated she was offended by "Mr. Paine's sexually explicit, unwelcome, and unsolicited photograph of his genitals, in addition to the graphic sexual comments."
In his press conference, Paine admitted to sending a series of lewd messages on the eve of the 2017/18 Ashes series to a female co-worker and expressed his remorse for having done so.
The latest incident left the fans shocked and questioned how CA cleared him, with some calling it sexual harassment and severely criticizing the cricketer.
Have a look here how fans reacted on Twitter:
