Cricket News: Steve Smith is now free to captain the Australian cricket team once again, as the ban on his captaincy ended on Sunday 29 March. The ban on Smith’s captaincy ended at a time when cricket is being played neither in Australia nor anywhere in the world due to coronavirus.
Smith played his last match against New Zealand on the empty ground in Sydney. This three-match series was later canceled due to coronavirus. Cricket Australia had banned Smith and his captaincy for two years in 2018 for ball tampering.
Smith had admitted that he had asked Bencroft to tamper with the ball during the third Test match against South Africa at Cape Town. Smith and Bencroft were also suspended from vice-captaincy, while Bancroft was banned for nine months.
What was the sandpaper controversy?
In March 2018, when the Australian team went on a tour of South Africa, the Australian opener Cameron Bencroft was caught in Ball Tampering in the Cape Town Test. Bencroft was seen removing yellow items from his trousers during the match. TV replays saw Bencroft using tape-like objects from the pocket to spoil the shape of the ball, which he later tried to hide in his trousers.
By transforming the tape into sandpaper, it was used by Bencroft to make the ball rough on one side, so that the bowlers would get a swing. In the press conference after this incident, Australia captain Steve Smith agreed to the ball tempering. A few hours after the ball tempering incident, the Australian government asked CA to remove Steve Smith from the captaincy.
Australia’s Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull also called the incident “shocking and disappointing”. Later Steve Smith had to relinquish the captaincy of Australia’s cricket team. Vice-captain David Warner also lost his post. Steve Smith and David Warner were banned for one year. Apart from this, Cameron Bencroft was banned for 9 months.