CAPE TOWN – In another dramatic day in the fall-out of the ball-tampering saga, Darren Lehmann resigned as the head coach of the Australian team on Thursday.
Lehmann made the announcement at a press conference in Johannesburg ahead of the fourth Test against the Proteas at the Wanderers, which starts on Friday.
The match will be the 48-year-old Lehmann’s last game in charge of the Baggy Greens.
His decision follows the two press conferences held in Australia by now-deposed captain Steve Smith – who broke down crying during an emotional session in front of the media – and Cameron Bancroft.
READ: Steve Smith won’t blame David Warner: It’s on my watch
The main protagonist in the incident, former vice-captain David Warner, made his apology on Instagram as he was still travelling back home to Sydney.
READ: Warner breaks silence, apologises for role in ball-tampering scandal
Lehmann had been cleared of any wrongdoing in the matter by a Cricket Australia investigation on Tuesday.
“Saying goodbye to the players was the toughest thing I’ve ever had to do,” he said.
READ: Cameron Bancroft: I lied, I panicked, and I’m truly sorry
Lehmann won two Ashes series during his tenure, and was contracted until the end of the 2019 Ashes series. Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland said this week that Lehmann was going to continue as the coach, but the former left-handed batsman has decided to quit in the wake of #SandpaperGate.