Credit: ICC
On March 23, 2018, Former Australia opener David Warner, Steven Smith, and Cameron Bancroft were caught in the sandpaper gate during the Cape Town Test against South Africa. South Africa captain Faf du Plessis won the toss and put his team to bat first on the first day of the game. Opener Dean Elgar put up an excellent effort with his bat for the Proteas and ended the day with an unbeaten 121. The home side’s relentless approach against bowlers shattered the Aussie side’s confidence and the visitors resorted to the act of tampering with the ball to generate swing. Warner hatched the plan of using sandpaper and Cameron Bancroft was given the responsibility to execute the plan and skipper Smith was aware of the plot.
Bancroft was caught on the screen rubbing a yellow-coloured object on the ball. When caught, he said it was sticky tape, however, the thing later turned out to be sandpaper. Following the scene, the media created pressure and Bancroft admitted his guilt. Captain Smith also accompanied him in front of the media and revealed that the plan was devised by the senior players of the team. Smith didn’t reveal the names but the veteran emphasised Darren Lehmann, who was the head coach then, was not involved with the coaching staff. Amidst the controversy, Australia also lost the game by a heavy margin of 322 runs.
Cricket Australia’s stern action against its players
Following the controversy, Cricket Australia (CA) took stiff action against Warner and Smith. Both were banned for a year from the sport. Bancroft was also punished for the offence as he was handed a nine-month reprimand. Smith was also banned from Australia captaincy for two years.
Smith was also seen breaking down on the screen. He took the responsibility for the infamous saga and said, "he’s regretful and devastated." Both Smith and Warner were also banned from the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018, which was played a few weeks after the conclusion of Australia’s tour.
