Australia’s ball-tampering crisis in SA hits the national conversation

Australia’s ball-tampering crisis in their Test series in South Africa hit the national conversation on Sunday when prime minister Malcolm Turnbull laid into Steve Smith’s side.

“It seemed completely beyond belief that the Australian cricket team had been involved in cheating‚” Turnbull was quoted as saying by the Melbourne Age.

“After all our cricketers are role models and cricket is synonymous with fair play.

“How can our team be engaged in cheating like this?

“It beggars belief.”

Smith admitted on Saturday that he and the rest of what he called Australia’s “leadership group” had roped Cameron Bancroft‚ the most junior member of the team who is playing his eighth Test‚ into a plan to try and roughen the ball by rubbing it with sticking tape loaded with sand taken from the pitch.

Smith and Bancroft confessed after the latter was caught redhanded by television cameras before tea on day three of the third test at Newlands on Saturday.

On Sunday Smith and vice-captain David Warner stepped down from their positions for the rest of the Newlands test.

The captaincy has been passed to wicketkeeper Tim Paine‚ who is playing his 12th test.

Turnbull had what he called a “frank discussion” with Cricket Australia chair David Peever.

“I have expressed to him very clearly and unequivocally my disappointment and my concern about the events in South Africa.” Turnbull said.

“He has said to me that CA will be responding decisively‚ as they should.

“It’s their responsibility to deal with it but I have to say that for the whole nation — who holds those who wear the baggy green up on a pedestal about as high as you can get in Australia — this is a shocking disappointment.

“It’s wrong and I look forward to CA taking decisive action soon.”

Another arm of the government‚ the Australian Sports Commission (ASC)‚ said it “condemns cheating of any form in sport”.

“The ASC expects and requires that Australian teams and athletes demonstrate unimpeachable integrity in representing our country‚” an ASC release said.

CA chief executive James Sutherland said in Melbourne on Sunday: “This morning [Australian cricket fans] have every reason to wake up and not be proud of the Australian team. It's a sad day for Australian cricket.

“Activities on the field yesterday in Cape Town are neither within the laws of the game or within the spirit of the game.

“For us at Cricket Australia that’s extremely disappointing but more importantly it’s extremely disappointing for Australian cricket fans.”

CA have tasked their head of integrity‚ Iain Roy‚ and team performance manager Pat Howard with coming to South Africa to lead their investigation.

Roy and Howard were instrumental in the sacking of Mickey Arthur as Australia’s coach before the 2013 Ashes.

“We have a responsibility to take this further and to understand more about the issue‚” Sutherland said.

“We need someone to go over there and talk to the relevant people and understand the detail and then we’ll make appropriate decisions on the next steps.

“We are in the middle of a game and that game needs to conclude but in course of next couple of days we’ll get to the bottom of this.”

Sutherland said he had yet to speak to Smith on the saga‚ like he did in the wake of Warner’s verbal abuse of Quinton de Kock during the first test at Kingsmead.

South Africa’s team manager‚ Mohammed Moosajee‚ described the series as “intriguing on the field but somewhat theatrical off the field”.

Five players — two South Africans and three Australians — were punished by the match referee in the first two tests.

The International Cricket Council have yet to say what they will do about the ball-tampering case.

Moosajee said the Australians had followed a sensible course of action after being exposed as cheats.

“I can’t really talk for them‚ but when the evidence is as damning as it was it’s sometimes better just to come clean‚” he said. “That’s probably what they were thinking.”

Moosajee spoke before the start of Sunday’s play‚ and said the South Africans would not take for granted that the drama had weakened the Australians’ resolve to win a series currently level at 1-1. 

“We’ve always been used to Australian teams that want to lead from the front‚ almost bully you on the field and off the field‚ and we’ve managed to minimise that.

“But it can also go the other way — when somebody’s wounded and their backs are against the wall they come out blazing.”

They didn’t this time: South Africa’s lead soared past 400 after lunch.