By IANS,
Wellington : New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee was Tuesday accused of lewd behaviour by a co-passenger on a flight between Sydney and Dubai, from where the team was to fly to Mumbai for the World Cup starting Feb 19.
New Zealand Cricket CEO Justin Vaughan confirmed that Southee had been drinking and took a female passenger back to his seat, The New Zealand Herald reported Wednesday.
Team Manager Dave Currie, however, came to Southee’s defence and said that he only chatted with the woman over a couple of drinks.
“I have become aware of the media attention about the incident and carried out a thorough investigation. I have spoken to Tim (Southee) directly as well as team management. Tim has described a detailed version of events and has provided a written statement in relation to this,” Currie said in a statement.
“I also spoke with several individuals and held a team meeting. Everyone is adamant that nothing untoward occurred on the flight and are surprised about the reports.
“Tim met a female passenger on board the plane and spent some time with her. However, we are confident that nothing inappropriate happened between them,” he added.