Why David Warner's comments are coming back to haunt him
The Australian Test team are facing the music after former captain Steve Smith admitted he and the side’s “leadership group” instructed young opener Cameron Bancroft to use a piece of tape to tamper with the ball during the third Test.
The Australian cricket team hasn’t seen an embarrassment this bad since the infamous underarm incident in 1981 with Trevor Chappell.
Now, former comments made by deputy David Warner about cheating in the gentleman’s game have resurfaced.
When South Africa toured Australia in 2016, Warner inferred that ball tampering was just as bad as match fixing.
After South African skipper Faf du Plessis used a mint to shine the ball, Warner spoke about his actions at a press conference as the scandal broke.
“I won’t comment on the way (South Africa) have been behaving but I just know from an Australian cricket perspective: we hold our heads high and I’ll be very disappointed if one of our teammates (did that),” he said.
“The rules are in place for a reason, if you’re not gonna use them, then why bother having them?”
Warner then explained that offending players would face severe consequences for their misbehaviour.
“That’s the fortunate thing these days,” Warner said in 2016. “(Officials have) got the rules and they’re going to stand by their decision, and I think that’s going to be a good thing.
“We’ve all been on the back end of them from time to time. Now that they’re cracking down on it, especially with the points system, we as players know the guidelines now, so if you’re going to overstep that mark and you get fined, be prepared to miss Test matches as well.”
Now, Warner must endure the consequences of his own actions with veteran cricket writer Robert Craddock revealing Warner is set to join Steve Smith on the sidelines for the Johannesburg Test.
Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland is expected to touch down in South Africa today to discuss the future of the Aussie team.