Cricket Australia

http://www.cricket.com.au/Global Items/news/2013/2/8/lee-cricket-is-clean

Lee: Cricket is clean

UPDATED 08 February, 2013 5:14PM AEST | by John Greco, Omnisport 1

Former Test quick Brett Lee is adamant cricket is not a dirty sport but wants the Australian Crime Commission to start naming names so domestic sport can begin to move on from this controversy.

While the ACC's report revealing extensive use of performance-enhancing drugs and match-fixing in Australian sport, no athletes or coaches suspected of involvement have been named.

It is the lack of detail which has frustrated many sporting identities, who feel the lack of specificity tarnishes everyone.

Lee is confident the Australian public will maintain their faith and love of sport but they deserve some answers.

"I think they will and I do believe they can but we want to see some evidence and if someone is being caught then show us," Lee said on Friday.

"Show us the people who have done the wrong thing and then they (public) can deal with that.

"It's not for us to say who are the people are in trouble here, or which people have done the wrong thing.

"All I can say is on behalf of the Australian cricket team and anyone who wants to play for their country, everyone is doing the right thing and making sure they are training very hard."

Lee, who played 76 Tests for Australia and more than 200 one-day internationals, said he never saw any signs of drug-taking and wrongdoing in his 20 years in the sport.

"I've put my body on the line every single day but I've done it properly," he said.

"And I do believe that 99 per cent of people out there are doing the right thing so not everyone is tarred with the same brush.

"Most importantly... I've never seen anything in cricket that would lead me to believe that it's a dirty sport.

"We obviously pride ourselves on our image and we're out there to do the right thing and portray the right image to the children."

Lee said cricketers were constantly drug-tested throughout his career and backed the introduction of blood testing if it would further help clear up sport.

"I'm very careful what I put into my body, if you're not sure you don't take it," he said.

"That's why the guidelines are in place and that's why there are numbers you can call, internet access as well.

"That's why it falls on the athlete's shoulders."

Young fast bowler Patrick Cummins, who has battled a range of different injuries in his early forays to international cricket, added: "I've never seen anything that's closely related to what they were talking about yesterday.

"Obviously everyone is aware about those kind of those things (supplements) and we're definitely really safe with what we take.

"We all know what we're doing and everyone that is around us wouldn't put us in any kind of danger."

First Posted 08 February, 2013 5:13PM AEST

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