Former England cricketer Chris Lewis appeared in court yesterday charged with trying to smuggle £200,000-worth of cocaine hidden in tins of fruit into Gatwick.

Lewis, 40, played 32 tests and 53 one-day internationals as an all rounder in the Nineties and was once hailed as an heir to Ian Botham.

He was arrested on Monday morning with basketball player Chad Kirnon, 26, after Border Agency staff allegedly found nearly 9lb of the drug in their luggage.

The cocaine, apparently in liquid form, was allegedly discovered in a routine search just after they arrived at 6am on a Virgin flight from St Lucia in the Caribbean.

Friends spoke of their shock at his appearance yesterday at Crawley Magistrates' Court in West Sussex, where the two were remanded in custody until next week.

Lewis said nothing during the short hearing and was refused bail by chairman Elaine Richards due to the 'nature and seriousness' of the alleged offence and because such a 'large quantity' of the drug was said to be involved there was a risk Lewis might abscond if bailed.

The alleged large quantity of drugs also suggested a potential link with 'international crime'.

More