AUSSIES SET TO KICK OUT SHAMED PAIR
STEVE SMITH could be stripped of the Australia captaincy permanently, as he and vicecaptain David Warner face lengthy bans for their part in the ball-tampering scandal in South Africa. On the day it emerged many of Australian cricket’s major sponsors were considering their involvement with the sport, the board’s chief executive James Sutherland left for Johannesburg declaring: ‘We know Australians want answers.’ He will act on the recommendations of Cricket Australia’s integrity unit, who continued their inquiry into what led Smith’s team to cheat during the third Test in Cape Town. Decisions are expected today. Smith has already been banned from the final Test at the Wanderers starting on Friday, and Warner — a central figure in the Australia leadership group that hatched the plan for Cameron Bancroft to rough up one side of the ball — is set to follow suit. Though talk of life bans seems unlikely, Sutherland is under pressure from Australia’s Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to reflect the mood of the nation and take decisive action. The repercussions of the players’ decision to break the laws continues to spiral beyond their control. Qantas Airways, cereal brand Sanitarium, brewer Lion, kit firm Asics and Toyota were among several sponsors who indicated their involvement with Australian cricket was in jeopardy. A Sanitarium spokesman said: ‘The actions taken by the team in South Africa don’t align with our own values — (we do) not condone cheating in sport.’ Their concerns were reflected by Lion: ‘Like the rest of Australia, we’re deeply concerned. This is not what you’d expect from anyone in sport at any level.’ Qantas said in a statement: ‘This is deeply disappointing and certainly not what anyone expects from our national team. We are in discussions with Cricket Australia as this issue unfolds.’ Tim Paine, the acting captain, admitted: ‘It’s been a horrible 24 hours. The reality and enormity of what has happened has started to sink in.’ Meanwhile, MCC called for a ‘major shift in attitude and culture of all those with responsibility for leadership within the game, to give young players the kind of role models who will uphold standards, preserve cricket and, vitally, the Spirit of Cricket for future generations’.