Australian celebrities Tones and I and Wiggles star show support for David Warner over cricket ban

Australian celebrities including Tones and I, a Wiggle and Prison Break star Dominic Purcell have rushed to back David Warner after he escalated his battle with Cricket Australia over his captaincy ban.

Warner issued an explosive statement to his 9.6 million Instagram followers on Wednesday night, announcing that he would be withdrawing his request for a lifetime ban from acting.

The 36-year-old cited the fact he would have to undergo a public “trial” that would expose his family to “further trauma” – and slammed the Counsel Assisting the Review Panel for his treatment.

After the father-of-three released the emotional statement, Australian celebrities sent their messages of support to the 97 Test veteran who has batted 24 centuries for Australia.

David Warner, pictured with wife Candice, took to social media on Wednesday to announce that he is withdrawing his request to have his ban on leadership lifted; and slammed his treatment by Cricket Australia and the solicitor who assisted them in the review

Superstar singer Tones and I wrote: “Australia loves you mate we are in your corner” accompanied by a love heart; which both Warner and his wife Candice acknowledged with a message of thanks.

The “Dance Monkey” singer, real name Toni Watson, was a strong supporter of Australian cricket; and just won the Song of the Year Aria Award for “Cloudy Day.”

Watson modeled for the Big Bash League last season and showcased their wares with a series of iconic shots – and is clearly a huge Warner fan too.

“The new Nike kits for this year’s Big Bash are sick and I’m looking forward to coming to a match. At the end of the day, cricket is the real winner,” Tones and I said last year while modeling the BBL’s merchandise range

Tones and I, real name Toni Watson, poses with her Song of the Year Aria Award for “Cloudy Day” on November 24.

Dominic Purcell, catapulted into the Hollywood stratosphere for his starring role in Prison Break, hailed Warner for his leadership in the face of relentless criticism since the saga.

“This self-response (sic) is what we call ‘A BORN LEADER’. Keep going…can’t wait for the book,” he wrote.

Purcell and Warner have been close friends for many years; and can often be seen joking with each other on their social media pages.

Dominic Purcell, best known for his starring role in Prison Break, is a longtime friend of Warner’s and took to Instagram to support his pal

Star jockey turned reality star Robbie Dolan also commented with some supporting emojis, as did NRL Aaron Woods.

English cricketer Michael Vaughan was among those from the game who publicly supported Warner at his post; as did Australian teammates Marcus Stoinis and Alex Carey.

Former semi-professional cricketer Cameron Merchant, who is now an influencer thanks to his appearance on Married at First Sight, agreed with Warner that “family should come first”.

Teammates including Alex Carey and Marcus Stoinis showed their support for Warner following his explosive and emotional statement, while superstar singer Tones and I and Hollywood actor Dominic Purcell also wrote in the messages

Celebrities and athletes, including England legend Michael Vaughan, jockey Robbie Dolan and rugby league star Aaron Woods, took to social media to show their support for Warner

After Warner released the lengthy statement, Ms Candice broke down in tears on her radio show on Thursday morning as she described the impact the whole saga has had on her family.

“It’s an intense statement because not only has it been an incredibly intense 12 months, it’s been since March 2018. We live it day by day that the pain doesn’t go away. it’s still raw,” she said on Triple M’s Summer Breakfast Show, which Candice hosts alongside Harley Breen and Tom Tilley.

“We go to cricket so often and there are always people screaming loudly and my daughters proudly wear their father’s name on their backs.

“The fact that my daughters have to deal with past incidents of abuse is not fair,” Candice tearfully said after taking a moment to calm down while talking about her children.

David Warner and his wife Candice, pictured at the start of the Everest race in September, were both scathing for his treatment in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal

Candice responded to Warner’s statement with “Family First” and “Now is not the time” before revealing some explosive allegations of her own.

“The fact that there was a lack of player welfare and no welfare for David and our family speaks volumes,” she said of the fallout from Sandpapergate and Warner’s subsequent attempt this year to lift his ban.

“It’s affected us for so long and I’m pretty sure not everyone wants to keep talking about it…David’s had enough.”

Warner previously posted a very cryptic message on his Instagram with a picture of a lion and the caption, “Let the dogs bark, the lion is still king.”

It was a post that came just hours after the news that he would not be captaining the Thunder on his BBL return this season; The club cited the difficult process of lifting the ban as the reason.

Commenting on this post, the ‘Blue Wiggle’, Anthony Field, showed that Warner’s reach and influence extends to many industries in Australia.

The legendary “Blue Wiggle”, also known as Anthony Field, is another high-profile Australian showing his support for Warner

Warner and his team-mates will continue their streak against the West Indies this afternoon when the second Test begins in Adelaide for the day-night tie.

Beware the injured lion – no doubt Warner will be keen to put this saga behind them with a mammoth century against a limping Windies side.