Cricket: Drugs charge denied

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Former England cricketer Chris Lewis denied a charge of attempting to smuggle drugs into Britain during a court appearance yesterday.

The 41-year-old former allrounder was arrested in December at Gatwick Airport when nearly 4kg of liquid cocaine, worth about 200,000, ($567,540) was found in his baggage hidden in fruit tins.

Lewis, who played 32 tests and 53 one-day internationals in the 1990s, had flown in from St Lucia with former amateur basketball player Chad Kirnon, who was also arrested and pleaded not guilty at Croydon Crown Court.

A full trial has been set for May.