Cairns appears in court

New Zealand

Former New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns appeared in Southwark Crown Court on Thursday, charged with perjury linked to a libel action brought in the United Kingdom in 2012.

Cairns won £90,000 after he sued Indian Premier League founder Lalit Modi over an accusation of match-fixing.

But the 44-year-old was accused of perjury and appeared in the London court alongside barrister Andrew Fitch-Holland, who is facing one count of perverting the course of justice.

”I’m obviously extremely disappointed. However, at least there will now be an opportunity to face my accusers in an open forum, with some rigour and proper process around that, so that I can clear my name once and for all,” said Cairns.

Judge Alistair McCreath gave the pair unconditional bail to appear for a plea and case management hearing at the same court in January next year. Both men will likely contest the allegations. The trial, expected to span about four weeks, will start in October 2015.

”We can confirm that we have authorised police to charge Chris with one count of perjury, which arises from a libel trial held in the UK in March 2012. We have also authorised police to charge Andrew with one count of perverting the course of justice, which arises from actions taken relating to the same trial,” read a statement from the Crown Prosecution Service.

New Zealand

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