Nicholls cleared of Plunket Shield ball-tampering charge

Henry Nicholls has been cleared of ball tampering after being reported during a Plunket Shield match.

TV footage of the match between Canterbury and Auckland last week appeared to show Nicholls brushing the ball against a helmet during a change of ends.

The charge was brought under Rule 3.1, article 1.15 of the New Zealand Cricket code of conduct which involves changing the condition of the ball in breach of Law 41.3 of the Laws of Cricket

However, a disciplinary hearing has found "that neither actions of Nicholls nor the evidence presented met the threshold required to rule a breach."

"We find the Player's actions were, in fact, unlikely to alter the condition of the ball or the shape of the ball," the commissioners noted.

An NZC statement continued: "That meant any allegation of unacceptable behaviour under Rule 3.1 could not be upheld. The charge against the Player was therefore dismissed."

The disciplinary hearing conducted on Saturday by independent commissioners Lee Robinson and John Greenwood 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.

Nicholls made 120 and 30 not out in the match, helping Canterbury to an eight-wicket win. They currently sit fourth on the Plunket Shield table.

Nicholls will be part of New Zealand's squad for the upcoming two-Test series in Bangladesh which follows the ODI World Cup.