Cricket Australia has come down hard on Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft but ‘tampergate’ will not end hereThe harder you step in mess, the more it spreads. Last Saturday Cricket Australia found a flaming bag of the stuff on its doorstep and, just like the headteacher in the high school movie, decided the best way to put it out was to stamp right down on it. CA has banned Steve Smith and David Warner from all state and international cricket for a year, Cameron Bancroft for nine months, and ordered all three to do 100 hours of community service. Smith will not be eligible for any kind of leadership role in the Australian team for another two years,...
The fallout from the ball-tampering scandal keeps on coming and the executions have been swift – is there even the slightest chance Australia has taken this just a little bit too far?Is #MeToo the new -gate? As you know, the final syllable of Watergate has long conferred instant gravitas on any scandal, from major political skulduggery to the suspected theft of a yoghurt from your office fridge. The -gate suffix automatically invests whatever it is with all the epochal, slightly impenetrable drama of a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters, and the ensuing presidential cover-up thereof. Inevitably, then, the business of Australia cheating in the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town was instantly branded Tampergate by many...
James Sutherland’s general comments about an uncompleted investigation into ball tampering did the ruling body no good and allowed the issue to festerIt was as Cricket Australia as Cricket Australia gets. Process before progress, careful phrasing before straight answers. The chief executive officer, James Sutherland, fronted up on Tuesday evening South African time after a day of anticipation about how Australia’s ball-tampering scandal would be resolved, then postponed resolving it by 24 hours, saying the investigation he had commissioned was incomplete.Some concrete information of significance did come out. Preliminary findings implicated only the Australia captain, Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner and the junior Cameron Bancroft. The three would be sent home and replaced by Matthew Renshaw, Joe Burns and...
Australia ball-tampering scandal is a brew of dishonesty, hypocrisy, public fervour and tarnished pride that has inadvertently proved the Spirit of Cricket is still alive Australia place ball-tampering blame on Smith, Warner and Bancroft They say one of the early signs of a tsunami is the distant roar of the coming water. And maybe Steve Smith began to understand what was about to hit him when he heard the murmurs of disbelief during his confessional press conference on Saturday as he tried to sweep away his cheating with some po-faced platitudes about pride and integrity, and a promise he wouldn’t let it happen again. Related: ‘Say it ain’t so Steve’ – at least this scandal shows cricket still matters |...
While the ball-tampering furore will die down Steve Smith and his side have underestimated the values Australians attach to the game“It ain’t true, is it, Joe?”“Yes, kid, I’m afraid it is.” Related: Steve Smith set to lose Australia captaincy and could face year-long ban Related: Steve Smith must go after scandal that has torched Australia’s reputation | Jason Gillespie Continue reading...