Builder confesses assaulting Jesse Ryder two years ago

Jesse Ryder

Wellington, Jan 28 (IANS) - A builder from Canterbury on Wednesday admitted that he assaulted New Zealand cricketer Jesse Ryder outside a Christchurch bar two years ago.

The 39-year-old was initially charged with assaulting and injuring, with reckless disregard for safety, Ryder, who was in a medically-induced coma for three days following the assault, reports The New Zealand Herald.

The assaulter was due to stand trial in March but pleaded guilty at Christchurch District Court. The man's nephew earlier admitted the charge of assault in the aftermath of the argument with Ryder outside a Merivale bar on the night of March 28, 2013. He will be sentenced on May 6.

Both men are presently out on bail.

After months of painstaking rehabilitation from his injuries, which included a fractured skull and a punctured lung, Ryder made an emotional return to New Zealand's one-day side against the West Indies side on Boxing Day 2013.