Symonds cleared

Andrew Symonds has been cleared of any wrongdoing following an incident at a Brisbane hotel at the weekend and will take his place in the Australia team for this week's second Test against New Zealand in Adelaide.

The Queensland all-rounder, who had only returned to the team for last week's first Test in his hometown following his three-month exile for failing to attend a team meeting, was involved in a scuffle with a fan at the Normanby Hotel in Brisbane on Sunday night.

Symonds' explanation of the incident, which has been supported by witnesses and hotel employees, was that a fan tried to hug him and take a photo, with Symonds rebuffing him.

The fan then reportedly unsuccessfully tried to punch Symonds, who left the hotel soon after the incident and returned to his hotel, with Cricket Australia opening an investigation on Monday.

Ricky Ponting praised Andrew Symonds' recent conduct at a press conference in Adelaide

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But CA chief executive James Sutherland confirmed in Adelaide today that Symonds will not be punished.

Symonds said: "I maintain that I acted appropriately while at the hotel but I regret making the decision to visit the hotel as I realise I put myself in a compromising position.”

"I have told my team-mates that I am sorry to have put them through this distraction at a time when they are trying to prepare for a Test match so soon after the Brisbane game, particularly those who were also at the hotel and were named in media reports.

"I have learnt a valuable lesson from this incident and I know that actions speak louder than words and that's how I will be judged."

Despite the incident Australia captain Ricky Ponting insisted Symonds remained an important player in his side, who will look to follow up the 149-run victory over the Black Caps at the Gabba when the second Test gets under way at the Adelaide Oval on Friday.

"We were very impressed with what he did in and around the group up in Brisbane during the game," Ponting said.

"We also identify that yes he made a mistake, he made a wrong decision to do what he did after the game but we were also reasonably impressed that he acted in a sensible way while he was at the pub so Andrew Symonds is definitely worth having around.

"He knows what commitment is required for him to stay around. It can’t become any clearer to him than it has been laid to him in the last couple of days."

Ponting said the team and CA were keen to help Symonds overcome his problems and become a “better person”.

Sutherland revealed an internal investigation had found Symonds had not provoked the incident and had acted in a “restrained and mature” manner.

CA CEO James Sutherland said Symonds acted in a “restrained and mature” manner during the incident

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"Andrew did nothing wrong," Sutherland said. "In fact he coped with a challenging and difficult incident quite admirably.

"The episode was largely harmless but again illustrates the challenge that high-profile athletes from all sports can have when socialising in public places.

"Fans can be over-eager about wanting to talk to, and mix with, their heroes, morning noon and night and on occasions some members of the public do behave inappropriately when seeking to talk to, take photographs or ask for autographs."

But Sutherland did concede the incident was concerning given Symonds’ issues in the past.

"I thought it important to talk to Andrew and take advice from his professional counsellors to understand why he could be quite open about having a problem with alcohol and then find himself in the spotlight by visiting a pub a few days later," he said.

"I’ve revisited that advice to ensure that we are not rushing Andrew’s progress with his work in managing behavioural issues. That, to me, is more important than discussing, as media has suggested, whether or not I should impose curfews or other schoolboy type restrictions.

"Andrew is no saint, and never will be, but his lessons from counselling, reinforced to him by this incident, are that he is committed to making intelligent off-field decisions, taking accountability for those decisions and being aware there will consequences if he makes the wrong decisions."