- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Steve Smith and David Warner, the former captain and vice-captain of the Australian Test team, have been banned from playing any cricket in Australia for 12 months.
Smith has been barred from any executive position in any Australian team for two years (or 12 months after his playing ban finishes) while Warner won’t lead an Australian cricket side ever again.
Opening batsman Cameron Bancroft, the junior member and chief ball-tamperer, has been banned for nine months.
But all three are still able to play overseas, although the BCCI has banned them from playing in this year’s IPL.
So where does all that leave cricket?
The first question is why didn’t Cricket Australia boss James Sutherland announce the bans at his first media conference 14 hours earlier? Nothing had changed in the interim, so why the delay?
Like a lot of unanswered questions, the delay made no sense at all.
Has the grand old game suffered? No it hasn’t, only the three players have taken their rightful hammering.
The game will always be greater than the players, who are about to cop a massive financial blow, especially Smith and Warner, two of the best batsmen in the world.
They have only themselves to blame, and thoroughly deserve 12-month bans.
(Photo by Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images/Getty Images)
This is a fact. Not one of the three is a moron, but their decision-making has been idiotic.
It is inconceivable they premeditated a ball-tampering exercise that was so directly against the spirit of the game – and illegal.
Secondly, they didn’t take into consideration the 30 television cameras spread all round Newlands that would catch them out – how stupid.
And thirdly, the outrage that would follow if caught would automatically have major collateral damage to their innocent immediate family and loved ones.
Obviously plain bloody stupid, and selfish as well.
Just as obviously two vastly experienced campaigners like Smith and Warner were playing for Australia, but representing themselves.
Did they ever think of how their partners will be treated in public from now on, or from Warner’s point of view how his daughters will be treated in kindergarten – all of them totally innocent, but tarred with the same brush.
Smith and Warner will really feel the financial pinch if their individual sponsors bail out.
Smith has already lost WeetBix, and there’s Gillette and New Balance yet to decide.
LG Electronics has pulled out of Warner’s sponsorship, with Asics and Gray-Nicholls wavering.
This is big business with no way to make up the shortfall.
As in every democratic society, Smith, Warner, and Bancroft can appeal the decisions to an independent arbitrator.
But my advice to both Smith and Warner especially is don’t appeal at any cost as they may well end up with two-year bans, or worse.
Cop the 12, plus the leadership sanctions, and get on with your lives.
It’s going to be damn hard for them and their families, but both have nobody to blame but themselves.
Will either ever play for Australia again?
That will depend on their resilience and remorse – commit the crime and do the time.
That leaves coach Darren Lehmann who so far has been pigeon-holed in the innocent basket.
But he’s obviously guilty of letting the culture of the Australian team crash to toilet level.
What happened in Cape Town would have likely never surfaced if Lehmann had an iron grip on team culture.
Let’s see what happens in Johannesburg, starting Friday.