Crowe shocked

Cricket match referee Jeff Crowe of New Zealand says the recent South Africa-Australia series was the most ill-tempered he has seen. It saw several clashes between players and ended with Aussie captain Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and opening bat Cameron Bancroft banned for ball-tampering. “Never in my 14 years of refereeing have I seen such animosity between two teams that was mainly a result of the debacle in the previous test in Durban,” said Crowe’s report to the ICC. Warner and South Africa batsman Quinton de Kock were charged by the ICC for their heated off-field exchange on the fourth day of the first test in Durban.