Cairns in limbo as perjury trial heads into ninth week

London: Former New Zealand cricket captain Chris Cairns must wait until Monday at the earliest to learn the result of a perjury trial after jurors failed to reach a verdict following a second day of deliberations.

The 45-year-old Cairns is accused of lying during a libel action against Indian Premier League founder Lalit Modi, and is facing charges of perjury and perverting the course of justice.

The jury of seven women and five men has been considering the evidence for more than eight hours at London’s Southwark Crown Court, across Tuesday and Friday. The court did not sit on Wednesday and Thursday.

The judge, Justice Nigel Sweeney, said Friday he will accept a majority verdict.