Canterbury batsman Henry Nicholls has been cleared of ball tampering during last week's Plunket Shield match between his side and Auckland at Hagley Oval.
Nicholls was accused of breaching Rule 3.1, article 1.15 of the code of conduct during day three of the match, a rule which involves changing the condition of the ball in breach of Law 41.3 of the Laws of Cricket.
A New Zealand Cricket statement said a disciplinary hearing was conducted yesterday by independent commissioners Lee Robinson and John Greenwood which examined evidence and heard submissions from Nicholls, match umpires Kim Cotton and Derek Walker, Canterbury coach Peter Fulton, Canterbury high performance manager Ant Sharp, and New Zealand Cricket Players' Association representative Evan Jones.
The Commissioners found that neither the actions of Nicholls nor the evidence presented met the threshold required to rule a breach of the Code under Rule 3.1 Article 1.15 (Appendix A).
“We find the player’s actions were, in fact, unlikely to alter the condition of the ball or the shape of the ball,” they noted.
That meant any allegation of unacceptable behaviour under Rule 3.1 could not be upheld.
The charge against the player was therefore dismissed.
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