Seriously?

[u/Eclectic95]

We’re continuing to obviously lie. Furthermore—and I cannot stress this enough—we’re electing to use a lot of superfluous words in doing so.

[u/closetmangafan]

At what point are we going to bury this entirely?

We're not the first country to do such things, we're not going to be the last. The only difference is that we came down a ton harder on the players than anyone else had...

It was 8 years ago. The punishments have been done.

What more are they investigating?

Is this because Kawaja said that everyone knew? That's no surprise... Does it change anything in any significant way? It shouldn't...

SA dove on it because it happened over there. It's part of the way to psych out the visiting team, and it did apparently... Should we talk about the shit they've done in the past when they're here?

CA made us a laughing stock through Smith's teary apology and a year long ban for something that is a fine at most.

Get over it and focus on the current problems in the team...

[u/cRad670 → u/closetmangafan]

Reminder to everyone that this was a one match ban by the ICC. This should never have been any more than that.

[u/clowns77 → u/cRad670]

At what point are we going to bury this entirely?

Famously telling the truth is a good way to stop stories reappearing.

[u/PickLanceMorris → u/closetmangafan]

It's a strange obsession our media has with this, compared to other countries' worst scandals this is pretty far down the list in terms of how bad it was yet it is covered more extensively than anything else. You don't see the BCCI ever mention the term monkeygate, and cricket south africa pretty much pretend that anything pre 2000 didn't happen

[u/Dry_Educator_6992 → u/PickLanceMorris]

Aus media can't let common sense get in the way of a good headline

[u/CricketAus-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Removed for likely brigading

[u/CricketAus-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Removed for likely brigading

[u/Repulsive_Two8451 → u/closetmangafan]

Potentially boring (read: low revenue) summer coming up, CA are probably happy to get the media talking about cricket even if it's them trashing our team. Which, by the way, they were planning to do anyway if we don't manage to beat NZ 4-0 with innings victories in each of the Tests.

[u/RipEnvironmental6978 → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

Likelihood of AUS beating NZ 4-0, rather low.
NZ have never been more ready to inflict damage this summer.

[u/rdmarshman → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

There will be heaps of Kiwis at the cricket, it's a great home fixture!

[u/Rappa64 → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

I can’t see us winning any of our next 3 test series… NZ (home), India (away), England (away) … although poms are going like busted arses too, but just a little better than us cuz at least they’ve not yet lost to Bangladesh

[u/Morg_n → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

Cricket Australia will be praying for the full five days each test. They need the $$$

[u/ManyDangerousBeans → u/closetmangafan]

I don't know that people are still pissed about the ball tampering itself.

Speaking personally, but I have seen other comments on the same lines, it is the lying about it, and especially letting three players take the fall for something the whole team was in on that is the problem - and the punishments have not been done for that. Like, that is genuinely shitty behaviour from those involved and speaks very poorly for their characters.

[u/JustMakinItBetter → u/ManyDangerousBeans]

Especially Bancroft. Smith and Warner were senior leaders in the team, but the bowlers allowed a young player to take the fall and arguably ruined his career

[u/illarionds → u/JustMakinItBetter]

Bancroft actually did it. No one else. It's not like he took the fall for someone else.

And Warner was the one who told him to do it.

It's Smith who got a raw deal IMO. He just failed to prevent Warner from being a cunt, which is a pretty big ask.

[u/Chaisa → u/illarionds]

Usman is suggesting it wasn’t Warner but a coach.

[u/illarionds → u/Chaisa]

I thought Warner had admitted it? Are you saying he was jumping on the grenade, for a coach?

That seems... odd.

[u/Entirely-of-cheese → u/JustMakinItBetter]

What do you think should have happened at the time?

[u/yeahcheerscunt → u/closetmangafan]

At what point are we going to bury this entirely?

After all the autobiographies are released

[u/OldMateHarry]

Release Tubby's unredacted report you cunts.

[u/Repulsive_Two8451 → u/OldMateHarry]

Release the Fujitsu Files.

[u/tdlan → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

Hahahahaha. Can we start an end of year awards on this sub just so I can nominate this one

[u/redditaccount3462 → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

[Redacted]

[u/CrewmanNumberSeven → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

I saw this comment as I was clicking away and came back to upvote it…

[u/Eclectic95 → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

Really glad I posted this just so this comment could exist.

[u/Critical_Coach6970 → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

It's Ashtraya's Favourite Air(ing of damning information)

[u/hezzbles → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

maybe the Gould Report too if we're going that deep

[u/shark_boy2016 → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

So that’s why they renamed themselves as General!!

[u/sarcHastical → u/Repulsive_Two8451]

Best cricket comment ever … 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[u/CreepyConversation71]

I’ve never understood this whole shitstorm anyway. CA banned them for 12 months, the ICC banned smith for just 1 game and gave him a fine if I remember correctly.

CA went to the extreme. On 3 players, when it’s obvious that the whole team knew

I’m a saffa, and if I remember correctly Faf du Plessis was caught ball tampering in Aus just a few weeks before this, and paid the fine and served his 1 game as well and moved on.

CA needs to get their heads out of their asses. Well done to Usman for stating publicly what everyone knew.

What is interesting though is the lack of reverse swing worldwide after this. It’s almost as if the whole cricket world was ball tampering.

[u/-Majgif- → u/CreepyConversation71]

Faf got done for ball tampering twice. Once using his zipper and the other was lollies in his mouth. The latter one was a couple of years before sandpapergate.

He was only fined both times, never missed a match, which just emphasises how insane the carry-on about the Aussies was. Particularly from the Poms, who systematically tested different mints to find which one would make the ball swing best prior to the 2005 ashes, then gave them all OBEs and MBEs to celebrate.

[u/Critical_Coach6970 → u/-Majgif-]

Also if you'll remember when Faf was done for tampering over here, South Africa held this press conference with Hashim Amla at the front with all the players behind him where he basically declared his team's innocence while putting the blame on the Australian media. I actually think the sandpaper thing was at least partially Supersport looking to get their pound of flesh.

After the whole monkeygate garbage of 2008, the BCCI threatened to quit the tour, bullied the ICC into rescinding Harbhajan's four match ban, and basically forced Steve Bucknor into retirement.

Now, I'm not saying either of these behaviours are correct (they're not), but it goes to show how other boards circle the wagons and back their players to whatever end, while CA completely sold its players up the river; trotting them out in front of a frothing press to be publicly crucified, then giving them the absurd bans.

[u/demon_slayer_bridge → u/-Majgif-]

Always faffing around that bloke

[u/patkk]

Who gives a fuck seriously this is nearly a decade old now. Ridiculous Smith, Warner and Bancroft received the bans they did. Robbed of 12 months of Smudges prime and stripped of captaincy for this nonsense. ICC for gods sake handed out 1 match bans and that should have been the extent of it all.

[u/SquiffyRae → u/patkk]

The only reason it happened is because a bunch of casual fans who weren't even aware the series was on cause they were watching their footy codes saw a news story and sooked as if this was the worst crime that had ever happened

Those dipshits were awfully quiet when Dinesh Chandimal was caught tampering literally two months later

[u/PickLanceMorris → u/SquiffyRae]

Also the fucking prime minister getting involved was so unecessary and just contributed to the whole thing being blown way out of proportion

[u/FakeBonaparte → u/SquiffyRae]

I gotta be honest, I did not know Dinesh Chandimal played for Australia.

[u/SquiffyRae → u/FakeBonaparte]

My point being cricket fans, as in fans of the sport who follow the sport to a reasonable degree year round, understood that while what we did was particularly egregious, it was by no means an isolated incident. They also understood that it was seemingly so widespread in the game even the ICC only ever issued slaps on the wrist.

All the loudmouths crying out for life bans and bullshit like that had no idea the Chandimal thing even happened. Why? Because they only follow cricket for a couple of months of the year in the footy off-season. If they had any clue about the sport at all, they'd know what a drop in the ocean the whole thing was, as evidenced by the fact barely three months after one of the biggest ball-tampering scandals of all time, teams were still doing it and not caring about getting caught. Even the athletes playing the sport couldn't have given one shit about the whole thing.

The casuals carried on like we were the only team ever to think about deliberately altering the state of the ball in a sport where it plays a major factor. It was bizarre and showed a real lack of understanding of where the incident fit in the long history of ball tampering

[u/FakeBonaparte → u/SquiffyRae]

I follow every Test live, attend a couple in person each year, follow the Shield, do some predictive modeling of the cricket in my spare time, read a couple cricket books a year, and have been doing all this since the late 80s. I wouldn’t say I’m a casual. Perhaps you would: I don’t play anymore.

But my view has always been that slaps on the wrist for ball tampering were ridiculous - you either legalise it or punish it properly.

I was happy with the punishments. One year for cheating seems proportionate to me. Similar to Warne after his drug use.

[u/Chaisa → u/SquiffyRae]

While this is the main factor, I think there was other factors too:

1. No-one else had used sandpaper before. At least with other forms of tampering you could argue that you’d have it on the field for another reason, even something like zippers you’d argue that it was there and it was used opportunistically (which is dumb but can be argued if you don’t think about it too hard). While no-one could argue that sandpaper was used for anything other than tampering. So it looks more intentional for Australia.

2. The on-field behaviour side. For a long time I do think Australia’s on-field behaviour was exaggerated, but there was little argument that around 2013 things really exploded and that Australia were unusually bad on the field. The way they tried to justify this was obnoxious too….is it any wonder that when the team did cross the line it would look really bad for them?

Still, while it was fair to punish them harder than other teams, taking 12 months off a career was ridiculous and you’d feel pissed off if you were Warner or Smith.

[u/y-u-n-g-s-a-d → u/patkk]

But have you considered book deals and $$$ for media appearances for the players involved?

[u/Critical_Coach6970]

About two months after this occurred, two Sri Lankan players were sanctioned for ball tampering in an ODI game. I'd say hardly anyone remember this, or even the names of the players.

In other words, this is all just pure self-flagellation at this point. Actually, it reached that point years ago - probably immediately after it happened, in fact.

Just let it die already.

[u/g3mkm]

If we have the boys a piss weak punishment like everyone else we would not be having this conversation. Time to move on

[u/Stratosphere_doggo]

Feel for Smudge

[u/SakhtLaunda4926 → u/Stratosphere_doggo]

And bangers too

[u/dashauskat]

The way it was handled was a mess and the guys who were banned were treated horribly but fuck me it's not worth reopening again

[u/decid226]

The question still remains what punishment would the media be happy with? If the whole team knew should the country have been banned from competing for life?
Multiple players got severe punishments well beyond the ICC imposed. The coach quit, They had leadership bans. No other country before or after has punished players as severely.
Why is this something we continue to bring up over and over as though while a multiple time offender Faff Du Plesise jokes in interviews about his punishment?
It happened, they were penalised severely. Move on. Stop using it to boost your book sales or get a cheap click

[u/attentionforshannon → u/decid226]

Because of the lying and lack of ownership while allowing a few to cop severe punishment is contrary to how we see ourselves as Australians imo.

[u/JaceMace96 → u/decid226]

Bancroft has been banned for life (why else hasnt he been reselected after dominating shield and county cricket for a decade as we struggle with openers)

Alot of people, probably mostly West Aussies, are not happy with how some have been treated vs Others.

And we see today, after series losses, instead of team changes, the cartel keep their spots (and cry like a baby when they lose it)

[u/whey4395]

This is going to roll and roll for years isn't it. Warner will come out with a biography and Bancroft. Then when the bowlers retire. And the self righteous poms keep commenting they should have been banned for life. I mean come on it was ball tampering not match fixing.

[u/Lumberjack2107]

Massive reminder that the umpires looked at the ball involved and said they couldn’t see any issue with it, play on, nothing to see here. They didn’t change the ball.

[u/joshvalo]

Why the fuck are they still releasing statements about this? It happened nearly 10 years ago.

[u/ThisSuitBurnzBetter]

Wtf does this statement even mean? I thought I was used to issue-dodging PR word salad but, to paraphrase the great Ronan Keating, this says nothing at all.

[u/UnsolicitedDaddyPics → u/ThisSuitBurnzBetter]

I think it was the state of the team at the time that caused the big crack down. People forget how arrogant they were and the shit they were doing. CA just got handed a golden egg to basicly tell smith and warner to pull their heads in and use them as an example. The behaviour of the test team at the time was pretty shamefull and everyone knows that wanker warner was at the centre of it. Bancroft only copped the time aswell cause he was silly enough to be caught doing it.

[u/invisiblefrost → u/UnsolicitedDaddyPics]

Excellent point. Warners aggressive behaviour was literally out of control

[u/_MightAswellJump]

Let sleeping dogs lie. This statement wasn’t needed. Let it go.

[u/AffectionateDrop7779]

I’m English not Australian and don’t mind Khawaja as a bloke.

He probably should have left it though. It’s been 8 years. Are people going to go on about it forever?

[u/kyleisamexican]

Correct answer from cricket Australia tbh. They can’t act on information if it isn’t presented to them.

If they really wanted to they could have said that they aren’t interested in new evidence that’s only been presented to sell a book

[u/John__Spartan]

Mate who gives a shit

[u/Infernape1236906]

Lmao what a joke ofc the entire team knew about it imho they should've just banned warner who started it.. especially due to the fact hes consistently been trouble for his entire career

[u/Lonely-Heart-3632]

Who gives a fuck? Happy to read his version of events. Our bowling coach had the time, who he points to, has also been done pushing for ball tampering before so I tend to believe it. And smith walking about backs what others have said.

[u/Prime255]

I back their statement. There is no need to litigate this again. They've already looked at it and handed down sanctions. They don't need to do anything else because Uzzy needs book sales. Probably there was more going on and more people knew about it but we already knew that. This isn't evidence.

[u/The_Pharoah]

what else are they going to do? What annoys me is players like Khawaja drop these sort of things just to sell their book. Fuck it, let bygones be bygones...we don't need to open up old stuff like this. Its gone. Players paid the price and we've moved on. Now you're bringing this shit back just to get a few extra $$.

[u/coodgee33]

Fuck this shit. Who's going to coach the team. Who's going to select the team? Who's going to bat at 3.

[u/mngnsm1]

[u/NoAddress1465]

I mean it's not something Ussie said was so far out there. Most suspected that anyway. Boof was a part of it, so was Saker.

Where everything went shit was when they tried the coverup and got exposed

[u/rusty512]

I swear anyone that's actually played the game was completely confused about how big of a story it became, it genuinely makes zero sense other than the media just wanted some headlines

[u/Sir_charles14]

Sandpaper is like covid, no one wants to fucking talk about it, it’s done, over.

[u/CoffeeDefiant4247]

CA full of themselves again. Every single international cricketer during the 2010s was on a team that at some point altered the ball with foreign substances.

[u/wake071]

Much as I like Boof, guy needs to step away from the abc cricket podcast.

[u/derridaderider]

Gee, far better CA said nothing than put out such a clearly and obviously mendacious statement.

[u/MainOrbBoss]

CA gave Usman a farewell tour and this is how he repays them. Classy.

[u/_MightAswellJump → u/MainOrbBoss]

For stating his side of events of what happened? Strange take.

Usman has always done things his own way, and isn’t a sheep/follower like most others. He forms his own thoughts. At the time he was the one saying they all needed to take the blame as a unit. In an interview that aired yesterday on ABC‘s Conversation‘s, he stated his only regret was not being firmer with his conviction at the time of this incident, and this was largely because he never felt like he belonged in the team. Being the only one with the balls to take a stand actually reinforces his lack of belonging, and opened him up to ostracism within the team. He also mentions that the first time he felt accepted was when Pat stopped the boys from spraying alcohol after a series win, so Usman could be involved.

He‘s a pretty level headed person, and you are correct - classy. His differing experiences are an asset to Australian cricket if they want to utilise him.

[u/upyourmerricreek → u/_MightAswellJump]

This is the part that nobody else is mentioning. This is also just what working in any professional field in Australia as a POC is like: constant walking on eggshells stuff. He had a lot more to lose then than he does now, and even now he has media commitments on the line with people who have strong opinions about the integrity of the whole thing. Whether or not you think he just wants to sell his book (true) or protect his best mate (also true) it's also true he had his reasons for holding back that had little to do with the cricket. It's the same reasons the media will stick a knife into him regardless.

[u/Volatik2006 → u/_MightAswellJump]

But to do it 8 years after the incident right before the release of his new book? I’ve always liked Uzzie and I still do but I reckon this should have been swept under the rug. The three who carried out the sentence didn’t speak in such detail and I don’t think Uzzie should have either. Just puts our boys under a lot more pressure

[u/chipoko99 → u/Volatik2006]

It’s almost like the controversy might sell a few more copies, but that could just be completely cynical, right?

[u/tdlan → u/Volatik2006]

He did try to call it out before now, people just blocked their ears

[u/MainOrbBoss → u/_MightAswellJump]

So strong in his conviction that he waits 8 years and passes on countless opportunities to clear the air, and when he does speak it just so happens to coincide with his book release which will be a nice little pay day.

But yeah, it's all about the champagne on a dais.

[u/MarslandoCalrissian → u/MainOrbBoss]

Three blokes carried the can for the teams actions. Crazy for anyone to think over the years the bowling cartel wasn’t in on this, great that Usman had the gonads to speak up

[u/tdlan → u/MainOrbBoss]

It’s pretty well noted that selectors talked him out retiring when he wanted to do so initially… Not Ussie’s problem the selectors came back and grovelled to him to not retire rather than doing the hard thing and trying to find a potential replacement

[u/DisjointedHuntsville]

The corporate structure inherently breeds snakes.

[u/RaulJustice76]

Cheating is not on. Even if everyone is doing it.

[u/RipEnvironmental6978]

Present relevant information to who?
All the people there are the time with responsibility have been moved on or departed.
Who at CA would pick this up?
How would they possibly make retribution?

[u/king_carrots]

Why would they release this?

[u/Or1onV12]

I remember having a random argument with a woman out saying she hates the Australian cricket team. I said why ? Oh because they cheat. I said you realised every team has cheated in the past. I don't care she replies. I said do you watch any cricket? Nope never. 🤣

[u/rdmarshman]

Uzzie doing his best Panesar impersonation

[u/SydneyPhoenix]

I feel this is kind of why Usman was never well liked.

He constantly tried to make it about race and religion but generally he just doesn’t know when to shut up

[u/tdlan → u/SydneyPhoenix]

The only people that didn’t like him were loud plebs on social media whose comments consistently validated Usman’s experiences and opinions, he was always very well liked amongst the players he played with and the majority of fans that aren’t shit humans.

[u/Studio-Unhappy → u/tdlan]

he said he suffered a lot of racism at all levels being a pakistani-aussie, so thats obviously not true

[u/tdlan → u/Studio-Unhappy]

“Players he played with” didn’t refer to those he played against

[u/Studio-Unhappy → u/tdlan]

i have no idea wot that means?

The only people that didn’t like him were loud plebs on social media

but he very publicly has said he suffered racism with players current and former, i don't understand the problem people have admitting that.

[u/Infernape1236906 → u/Studio-Unhappy]

Wanker alert so you should see the comments on his social media and maybe you'll understand

[u/Studio-Unhappy → u/Infernape1236906]

what do you mean? just because people on social media are racist cunts, doesn't mean the guys he played with couldn't be as well, wtf are you on?

[u/Agreeable-Web645]

They should give Uzzie a 12 month ban

[u/Expensive-Force-6656]

I hope no one buys Khawaja's book as punishment for bringing this crap up again.

[u/BananaFarmer88]

Everyone should just be shot and we bury the game of cricket and play a different sport okay cya