A timeline of events that led to the resignation

Tim Paine's tenure as Australia's Test captain came to a sudden end on Friday when he resigned following the emergence of details of explicit messages he sent a female co-worker in 2017.

NOV, 2017

After a gap of more than six years, Tasmanian cricketer Paine earns a recall to the Test side for the Ashes. It was around the first match of the series that Paine exchanged explicit messages with a woman under employ of Cricket Tasmania, including, allegedly, a photo of Paine's genitals.

MAR, 2018

Paine is hastily elevated to the Test captaincy following the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town, which led to Steve Smith being sacked as skipper.

JUN, 2018

● Seven months after the text exchange, the woman sent a letter to Cricket Australia, Cricket Tasmania and Australian Human Rights Commission, complaining of sexual harassment.

● "The allegations against Tim Paine by a former Cricket Tasmania employee were brought to (our) attention when formal charges of theft were laid against that employee in mid 2018," a statement from Cricket Tasmania, issued on Friday, read.

● CA too launched an investigation, alongside Cricket Tasmania.

JUL, 2018

● Paine specified during his press conference on Friday that he was exonerated by these investigations, which found he did not breach the code of conduct.

● Criminal charges against the former Cricket Tasmania employee are still pending, and the matter remains before the courts.

NOVEMBER 19, 2021

● The investigation lay buried for nearly four years and may have stayed that way indefinitely, had the Herald Sun not reported the details of the text exchanges.

● It prompted the Australia cricket captain to step down and issue a tearful apology to his wife Bonnie.

● Paine said he and his wife worked through the betrayal at the time and that she'd forgiven and supported him. "I recently became aware that this private text exchange was going to become public. On reflection, my actions in 2017 do not meet the standard of an Australian cricket captain," Paine said. "I'm deeply sorry for the hurt and pain that I have caused to my wife, my family and to the other party. I'm sorry for any damage that this does to the reputation of our sport and I believe that it is the right decision for me to stand down as captain effective immediately," he said.