Cricket Australia is facing accusations it failed to protect junior cricketers from sexual abuse after a claim it allowed a player to be molested by a coach during a tour of India in 1985.
Dean Raymond Reynolds, now 57, is suing the sport’s governing body for more than $4m in the Queensland Supreme Court alleging assistant coach Robert ‘Bob’ Bitmead sexually assaulted him on the U19 Australian tour of India and Sri Lanka in 1985.
According to the claim lodged with the court, the assault occurred when Mr Reynolds, then aged 17, fell sick with gastroenteritis and was lying on his bed in a Mumbai hotel room.
After being given an injection by team doctor Malcolm McKenzie reportedly to treat the stomach illness, Mr Reynolds alleged he was approached by Mr Bitmead who proceeded to massage his penis without his permission.
“The plaintiff was groggy and in a semiconscious state but nonetheless protested to Bitmead,” according to court documents.
“Bitmead stated he was there to make the plaintiff feel better. Bitmead continued to stroke and masturbate the penis of the plaintiff for approximately a minute. The plaintiff then lost consciousness.”
He claims the assault effectively destroyed his cricketing career as well as a later role with Qantas after he developed an alcoholic abuse disorder linked to the alleged abuse.
Mr Reynolds, who grew up on a sugar cane farm in Queensland and was considered a talented opening batsman, described cricket as “not just a sport but a passion that defined my childhood.”
The plaintiff returned to playing cricket, including being selected for the Australian under-19 cricket team as captain and being a member of the Queensland Sheffield Shield training squad for four years before moving to England, where he played county cricket for Lancashire.
However, he lost his interest and passion for cricket and has not played the sport since the age of 21 because of the effects of the alleged abuse.
Mr Reynolds worked with Qantas as an international cabin crew member for 24 years between 1994 and 2018, but was stood down from his work on a number of occasions due to excessive consumption of alcohol and referred to mental health and drug and alcohol rehabilitation services.
He eventually lost his employment with Qantas, had a period of unemployment and received Centrelink benefits.
Mr Reynolds managed to obtain other roles in the hospitality sector after Qantas but over an 18 month period lost seven different jobs due to his alcoholic abuse and alleged injuries.
Former Australian youth cricketer Dean Reynold with his dad after returning from the Indian tour.
“The plaintiff has and continues to experience problems with concentration, memory, frustration, intolerance and sleep,” according to the claim lodged with the court.
“He continues to have problems with intimacy, which creates difficulties for him to have an enduring relationship and has contributed to the dissolution of three marriages. He thereafter has chosen not to enter any enduring romantic relationship.
“The plaintiff developed a pattern of alcohol abuse which progressively escalated over time… and he has had multiple admissions to hospital and a period in residential rehabilitation.”
Mr Reynolds claims that as a minor at the time of the alleged assault, he was vulnerable to the control and direction of the ACB and by its employees and could not make any reasonable steps to protect himself from the harm of personal injuries including sexual abuse.
Cricket Australia has declined to comment as the legal process is ongoing. Bob Bitmead has previously denied sexual assault claims.