Cricket Australia apologises to victims of child sexual abuse within the sport

Melbourne, Oct 03: Cricket Australia (CA) on Monday apologised to survivors of child sexual abuse within the sport in the country, saying the Board is exploring ways to help victims. CA Chair Dr Lachlan Henderson, in a statement, labelled historic sexual abuse as an "appalling issue."

Jamie Mitchell, a former Australia Under-19 cricketer had alleged early this year that he was "sexually abused" by team officials during the tour of Sri Lanka in 1985. The cricketing body is also set to discuss the issue during its next board meeting.

"We can't change what happened but we need to do what we can to assist victims. On behalf of CA I want to apologise to anyone who has suffered sexual abuse while involved in Australian Cricket," Henderson said in a statement.

He added that the Board is encouraging states and territories to sign up to the national redress scheme. "We are encouraging all states and territories to join the National Redress Scheme and the CA board is currently exploring other ways that Australian Cricket can further help victims of abuse.

"While we now have a rigorous set of policies and procedures around child safety, we need to ensure we are supporting anyone who has experienced past abuse as best we can."