Howzat

[Wilpshire Blue]

ICC hands out a one match ban to Smith.
Is this a joke?
A one year ban might have been seen as lenient.
The cricketing world will now await the action of CA. If they simply fall into line with the insipid ICC then I feel they will regret it for a long time.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/43531491

 

[ABBEY]

#bancheatsforlife

 

[davebirch]

#bancheatsforlife

Can't disagree with that, Abs

 

[OnlyOneTugay]

Australia got their comeuppance today , some excellent bowling from Morkel . It was sad to see the best batter in the world booed to and from the crease, after all this is cricket .

Smith deserves a lengthy ban ( as Wilpshire suggests perhaps 12 months ) and shouldn’t captain Australia again but I think to ban him from test cricket would be a step too far . Once the investigation is complete , similar bans for the ‘ leadership team/group’ too

 

[davebirch]

OOT, Smith will be forever tainted in Australian eyes for the disgrace he's brought on the team.
Having said that, The ICC has set the standard punishment too lightly.
The only thing in Smiths favour (as opposed to the others that cheated) is that he manned up and admitted it. All the others offered an excuse.

 

[davebirch]

An excellent article:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-...an-be-redemption-after-ball-tampering/9587086

 

[davebirch]

It's starting to add up, sponsorships under review:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-...d-warner-face-high-price-for-ball-tam/9588038

 

[davebirch]

KP reckons there's a bit more in store for Smith et al:

"Kevin Pietersen @KP24


A little birdie tells me that the weak ICC punishment isn’t anywhere near what Cricket Australia is thinking....

1:52 AM - Mar 26, 2018

• 7,393
• 1,787 people are talking about this"

edit: Smith won't be the only one going

 

[OnlyOneTugay]

An excellent article:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-...an-be-redemption-after-ball-tampering/9587086

Good reading thanks for posting it Dave . I think the following sentence from the article sums up many professional sportsmen at the moment:

"I've heard reports that the team has been surprised by the outcry. I'm surprised any of you are surprised."

They live in a different world , earn too much money too young and are lauded by the media who call them great when they're probably just very good . From that comes an arrogance and as the writer says, a detachment from reality .

Going back to Smith admitting that he did wrong and didn't offer excuses , I don't give him any credit for that . He only confessed when he had no alternative and he names the leadership group but doesn't name any names . To say it's the first time they've done it is beginning to unravel , not that anyone believed it in the first place. Pictures in our media of Cameron Bancroft ( the world's greatest ever fall guy ) putting granules of sugar into his hands then into his pockets during the 5th Ashes test at Sydney. As it says in one of the articles the " C" in front of Smith's name will always read Cheat not Captain . It's such a shame that a really good cricketer ( I'll hang back on great ) has messed his career up in this way .

The baggy green has never looked as shabby

 

[davebirch]

OOT, to me, the sh1t hasn't hit the fan yet.

Mind you, there have been incidents of ball tampering that have been given the slightest of penalties, and the perpetrators have got off virtually scot free.
This is the first time that it has come out that it was premeditated. There are a few previous instances that smack of a plan too.

If KP is correct, and I hope he is, I hope the group of "tamperers"( and I include all those around the world, Atherton included) will feel a little shameful for what they did.

 

[davebirch]

OOT, the person that wrote that article (Tracy Holmes) is a really good objective type of journalist.
Shes the daughter of a guy who was a world class surfer, not prone to anything that might be considered overstated.
I rate her.

edit: as for Bancroft putting things in his pocket, real time video, maybe, but stills, probably doctored.

 

[Wilpshire Blue]

It's starting to add up, sponsorships under review:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-...d-warner-face-high-price-for-ball-tam/9588038

I was watching the "confession" press conference and wondering how thrilled Quantas would have been as Bancroft and Smith admitted to cheating with the airline's logo prominently displayed on their shirts.

 

[Wilpshire Blue]

Surely the only way for Australian cricket to deal with this is to remove each of the key individuals from their positions, probably for ever.

This would show the world that Australia is truly aghast at these activities and will not tolerate them. It will also probably be the best deterrent for anyone else who has a "clever" idea in the future.
Any halfway house punishment will simply open the wound up again whenever Smith, Warner etc. next play for the national team, whether that's in a month, a year or two years.

 

[davebirch]

WB, my personal opinion, but I can't see them playing again, but, and it's a big BUT, it will need other nations to follow suit, and I mean, situations like Atherton, and Faf Du, to get rid of the problem.
Remember, the Saffers aren't angels themselves.

 

[OnlyOneTugay]

OOT, to me, the sh1t hasn't hit the fan yet.

Mind you, there have been incidents of ball tampering that have been given the slightest of penalties, and the perpetrators have got off virtually scot free.
This is the first time that it has come out that it was premeditated. There are a few previous instances that smack of a plan too.

If KP is correct, and I hope he is, I hope the group of "tamperers"( and I include all those around the world, Atherton included) will feel a little shameful for what they did.

I agree Dave but I think this is more about tampering . There's an excellent article by Michael Atherton in the Times this morning . He takes it further than tampering ( he would wouldn't he ! ) Wish I could post it on here . He identifies three areas :

1) the premeditated , planned and sneaky nature of the tampering itself
2) the use by senior players of the young and inexperienced Cameron Bancroft as the fall guy and what that says about the culture within the team
3) in Atherton's opinion the hubris and hypocrisy of this Australian outfit . They've always talked about head butting the line but not crossing it - play hard but fair , but keep within the rules . Lehman and CA complain about bad crowd behaviour in SA ( rightly so ) but Lehman was the one who wound up the Aussie crowd before the 2013 Ashes , asked them to give Broad so much stick that he'd go home crying .

As you said in your last post Dave the South African's aren't angels . . This Australian team has been careering out of control under Smith and Lehman , but they aren't alone , just the worst example .The ICC ( who have allowed on field standards to drop ) has to get cricket's house in order and do it quickly

 

[OnlyOneTugay]

I might be tempting fate here ( and thanks Australia for taking the heat off England's debacle ) but NZ seem to have it right at the moment . Under both Brendan McCullen and Kane Williamson they play it hard but fair and in the right spirit . Noticed when Root got injured on the hand before the close of play on the 4th day , Williamson had a word and patted him on the back . I doubt Smith would have even have thought about making an enquiry .

 

[davebirch]

This post is just a bit of a "pisstake", but I've got an image of Michael Atherton with a halo over his head!

"Let he who is without sin, cast the first stone"

 

[OnlyOneTugay]

Yeah that's why I put in the caveat ' he would wouldn't he '

 

[davebirch]

I might be tempting fate here ( and thanks Australia for taking the heat off England's debacle ) but NZ seem to have it right at the moment . Under both Brendan McCullen and Kane Williamson they play it hard but fair and in the right spirit . Noticed when Root got injured on the hand before the close of play on the 4th day , Williamson had a word and patted him on the back . I doubt Smith would have even have thought about making an enquiry .

I wish you could see some of the tests between the Kiwis and the Aussies, they are fierce

 

[Drog]

I think it's obvious that this will not have been the first time by a long way that this practice has been used. Normal pattern I'd imagine in most cases is for suchlike be done initially very covertly but with carelessness slipping in with familiarity until mistakes are made and the practice ultimately detected. Lets be honest whose daft idea was YELLOW tape? Is it some sort of misplaced patriotism OR is yellow tape actually supplied in the kit bag for the national team?
Be interesting to know how long this ha been going on for and how widespread the issue is. Might just be the Aussies and the Pakis or it's likely this might easily be the tip of the iceberg. I suggest the only way to avoid this stuff is for test match bowlers to play in lycra tights in future!