Axed Australian cricket coach Mickey Arthur today said there had been a "deliberate campaign" against him in past days and his reputation had suffered greatly from his sacking.
Returning to Perth after attending his mother's funeral in South Africa, Arthur said he had no choice but to take legal action against Cricket Australia after he was dismissed just days before the start of the Ashes series against England.
"After my dismissal, I received nothing in writing from Cricket Australia, no contact, and no payment at all, not even of my basic leave pay, until I was forced to bring in lawyers to assist in the process," he read from a statement.
"I had tried on a number of occasions to make direct contact at a very senior level of Cricket Australia, for days there was just no response."
Arthur, who was replaced by Darren Lehmann, said that given the circumstances of his dismissal, he had hoped that Cricket Australia would be willing to resolve the matter through private talks.
But explosive details of his Aus$4 million case to the Fair Work Commission, including claims of divisions within the Australian team, were leaked to the media ahead of the second Test.
"Selective leaks by others have ruined my attempts to protect the Australian cricket team and everyone involved," Arthur said.
"As I've said, no one associated with me has played any part in releasing that confidential document.
