SYDNEY: Disgraced former Austra­lian vice-captain David Warner will start his road to redemption by playing club cricket with Syd­ney’s Randwick Petersham, officials said.

The opener is serving a year-long ban from state and international cri­cket for his part in a plan to use sandpaper to tamper with the ball during the third Test in South Africa in March. But he is free to play at club level and is set to make a return to the field in September.

Randwick Petersham club president Mike Whit­ney, a former Test fast bowler, said Warner will play in at least three of the first four matches of the season.

“We’re delighted to have him. He’s one of the best players Australia has had since World War II,” he told the local Southern Courier newspaper on Wednesday.

“He’s been speaking to one of our club officials and he has committed to the first three or four rounds of the season. Why it is only three or four rounds at this stage I don’t know.”

Warner has also been linked with playing in the Northern Territory’s limited-overs Strike League.

Whitney, who played 12 Tests for Australia, said he emailed Warner shortly after he was banned in April to tell him the door was open.

“Everyone is excited to have him. He will be great in the changing rooms with younger players,” Whitney said.

Warner has been on the books at Randwick Peter­sham since 2013-14, but has rarely played due to state, international and IPL commitments. He was identified as the mastermind behind the plan to tamper with the ball.

Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2018