Downfall - The Story of Sandpapergate

On January 8, 2018, Steve Smith’s Australian team, wreathed in smiles, gathered on what resembled a corny parade float at the Sydney Cricket Ground to celebrate a 4-0 eclipse of England. Smith held the Waterford crystal, flanked by vice-captain David Warner and wicketkeeper Tim Paine; leaning in from the right was Warner’s opening partner, Cameron Bancroft. It is the sort of image that might hang in a cricketer’s home, appear on the cover of a souvenir book, or form part of the opening sequence of a sports-panel show.

[@VishalSharma-ks2dh]

the fact that David Warner has never taken any responsibility for his role speaks volumes on how much he respects the game. I grew up watching this game through the 90's, it is still to this day one of the only things that brings me and my father together. If you have no respect for this game you deserve to never be allowed to play this game ever again, sorry not sorry

[@wespaul9345]

Agree. There's something wrong there. It might surprise you Vishal but Australians don't like the team. They love cricket but didn't like the players.

[@paulskinner]

It was always a bit suspect that it was the series after the ashes they got found out, and returned from their bans just in time for the next ashes. Also, to call the reaction to it at the time a "hysterical reaction" is also crazy wordplay. It's completely justified reaction to blatant cheating.

[@brokkrdwarf]

Completely agree, cheating should never be taken lightly in any sport, specially the sort of cheating that was thought through beforehand like this one. There is the "spur of of the moment" kind of cheating like a hand ball in a football match that, although it still is cheating, you can argue it was done without thinking it through just the player getting carried away by the occasion. But cheating in this way which was planned beforehand, the players having time to think about what they are doing beforehand and doing it anyway, making use of an unfair advantage in the form of illegal tools or even doping which happens in many other sports, that kind of cheating should warrant a lifetime ban from the sport in any competitive nature imo.

[@mob7586.]

They are despised by all the other nations that play our lovely sport the stuff that they say to their opponents is outright discusting and it always seems to be that shit who suffers from little man syndrome hillbilly warner cricket will be better off without him

[@user-tm3cf6uy8u]

should have cracked down harder. lifetime bans. would have been difficult to come back from, but sent a strong message that Australia won't stand for that shit. as an australian (pretty much former) fan, it would have been great to see. winning's not everything. oh well.

[@mrkipling2201]

I’ve never seen home conditions having more effect than in the 2013/14 and 2015 Ashes. We were spanked 5-0 in Australia and didn’t play the conditions well at all, yet we beat Australia in 2015, bowling them out for 60, because they weren’t able to play the moving ball.

[@skar5541]

Australia trying to be self sympathetic is jokes

[@Wally-H]

Agreed, this documentary is all about them feeling sorry for themselves. There seem to only be two states of attitude you get from the Australians - they are either being arrogant and showing off when they are winning, or they are sulking and feeling sorry for themselves when it goes wrong.

[@waseemchaudhry2933]

Another Brilliant Upload Keep It Up

[@abhishektoshniwal254]

Thanks for the upload dude

[@fargoboyle]

Zero sympathy for Smith and Warner, we haven't got the whole truth yet, the so called leadership group? how none of the bowlers were involved defies belief. Also how Smith threw Bancroft under the bus in that press conference showed exactly what type of leader he was

[@shadowboypawan]

At the very least, those who confessed being a part of it should’ve been suspended for life. Tampering with the ball isn’t new, pre-planning to designate junior players to do your dirty work in such a choreographed manner is shocking.

[@Wally-H]

It's true there has been a history of players using Brylcream, sun cream, finger nails and dirt in the pocket (Atherton!) and it's all wrong but the lengths Warner went to with the tape and the sandpaper to cheat, were especially ridiculous. There is no way the bans were over the top and in my view, others caught cheating in the past got off too lightly. I'm English but I'm not going to defend Atherton for keeping his pocket full of dirt - cheating is a disgrace and there should never be any sort of line drawn where it is supposedly okay to do any of it. The TV cameras caught Atherton, they also clearly showed the Pakistan players gouging the ball back in the 1990's to make it reverse swing. Win fair or piss off and don't come back, I say.

[@princeroytilakasiri5675]

Totally agree 👍, what happened at Lord's this year wasn't cricket with the run out with Jonny Bairstow

[@princeroytilakasiri5675]

I was there at Lord's that day on the 5th day!!!

[@bus5683]

@@princeroytilakasiri5675it’s not like bairstow hasn’t done anything similar before hey

[@princeroytilakasiri5675]

You talk about the sprint of the game. Well the Johnny Bairstow run out is in question!! One aussie I like is Adam Gilchrist!!! Very true to his word!!!!

[@mk-ee7vx]

We saw Steve Smith cry on the telly!

[@bus5683]

Did you cry when he was celebrating the test championship and the World Cup ?

[@kiz5562]

lol, you're 5 years late to the joke. get over it

[@Mullekkulle]

Bina aansu kon rota hai bhai😂

[@DonHomersdonut]

Fast forward to 2023, not much has changed

[@rahul5349]

can you get the test documentary on here at all? love the cricket content

[@bmrcoachingacademy8531]

Very interesting how the forgot one person here Cameron Bancroft

[@bmrcoachingacademy8531]

This story aint over the truth will only be told when they all retire

[@markrobinson1369]

Same old Aussies

[@freechordsthetruthmarceden8277]

Looking forward to 5-0 in the Ashes next time! 🇬🇧

[@bus5683]

Aged well

[@pauljohnson1776]

It defies belief that no moret han 3 people were aware. Did the bowlers not notice that the ball was altered? Smith and Warner should not be anywhere near a cricket match for life. All the Aussie spin and tears should not hide tne fact that they planned and carried out a deliberate act of cheating. Period. The fact that they were happy to throw Bancroft to the wolves, is also reprehensible.

[@colinpenrose8275]

The umpires inspected the ball and have it back to Australia. At the time I don't think Bancroft had actually used the sandpaper on the ball. But the thought was there and as an Australian I had no issue with them getting lengthy suspensions from the ACB. Your comments about a life ban are funny. Faf duPlessis was found guilty on two occassions and took the fines handed to him rather than appeal and go to a hearing. There's plenty of evidence SA cricket authorities condoned ball tampering and even had the television station in on it by making sure they never put the home team under the microscope. Then we had England who on more than one occassion used their saliva after chewing mints. Marcus Threscothic in his book stated that England had experimented for months to see which mint got the most reverse swing leading up to an Ashes series. A series where some of their seamers where unplayable with reverse swing. That isn't a spur of the moment thing in a break for lunch. On a similar scale was Chris Pringle taking to the ball with a bottle top in a match against Pakistan. Your idea of a life ban for Smith and Warner is absurd when England got an OBE for winning that ashes series and other ball tamperers recieved fines or one or two match suspensions. The ACB gave out deserved punishment. Something that other countries need to do.

[@mrkipling2201]

Using saliva on the ball isn't tampering in my opinion. Using a foreign object brought onto the field for that purpose is. Along with trying to bite the ball or pick the seam with fingernails. Or putting dirt on it. They're all things that I consider ball tampering. Saliva isn't.

[@jeremyreid9582]

… but they are permitted to continue playing cricket today. Pity that Australia does not take cheating as seriously as South Africa. Even though no match was ‘fixed’ they banned their test captain for life. The Australians are just talk … talk in sad nauseating accent.

[@aledwyn6017]

Suggest and do are two different things

[@ducati916SPS]

Australia....its always Australia 😂😂

[@Wally-H]

They all cheat - Pakistan players were gouging the ball to make it reverse swing back in the 90's, England skipper Mike Atherton was once caught on TV using what looked like dirt in his pocket to rough up the ball. The only real difference is that the Aussies got caught at it in an age where multiple high-definition cameras pick up every little thing that the players are doing out there during a day's play.

[@nsh1772]

It's always Australia winning everything

[@ramsfan1st43]

@@nsh1772 so, you missed the RWC, did ya? Poor buggers flopped in the group stage. For a Southern Hemisphere team...just...wow. That's some weak sh.t right there.

[@Abdullah-Yousaf]

Smith and Warner absolutely destroyed the career of Bancroft.

[@maerum95]

Bancroft destroyed david career and put stain on smiths career. Off the field suggestion, was it not the responsibility of bankcroft to defy it.

[@mrkipling2201]

Rabada does that a lot. Shouts at the batsman after taking his wicket.

[@michaelx3419]

Because he takes lots and lots of wickets. He takes his demerits like a man. Cry more.

[@mrkipling2201]

​@@michaelx3419I'm not crying at all. I couldn't care less tbh. It was just an observation. He's never really done it against my team, England.

[@cornelcarelse7613]

​​@@mrkipling2201he dishes it out as he receives them, it's the fire up on it...both James and broad have done it, don't be so naive

[@mrkipling2201]

@cornelcarelse7613 I don't mind if he does it. As long as he doesn't get in trouble again, as that's only going to cost his team.

[@jonnymac7615]

he should have glued the sandpaper on the inside of his shirt noone would have known anything

[@architectmarketing2219]

It's rubbish to say it was Warner and Smith's fault. They all were in on it.

[@mrkipling2201]

I’m an England fan and even I thought it was too harsh. The punishments. Should have got about a 3rd of what they actually got.The bit with them walking through the airport reminded me of Ben Johnson being escorted through the airport after testing positive for drugs at the 1988 Olympic Games.

[@roshanariyaratnam8225]

The whole thing was a poorly covered up farce and I think 3 guys paid ultimately too high a price for the poor behaviour and antics of both teams. For warner and smith, this may have added time onto the end of their careers. Unfortunately, for Bancroft after all this, he hasn't quite found the same kind of form and he may never represent Australia again, which is a shame.

[@mrkipling2201]

@@roshanariyaratnam8225 I think Bancroft’s biggest mistake afterwards was the interview he gave that wasn’t very complimentary to the people involved.

[@jeff-gj6en]

They were happy to take their punishment so long as everyone would pretend this was the only time they tampered with the ball.

[@robertmason6366]

The whole team were behind it and as much as I think warner is a nob he should never have been left to take the whole rap

[@ervinstewart8222]

Same thing I said from day one,it's all be plan by the whole team and stuff

[@Wally-H]

I guess he took one for the team. If they'd all fessed up they would have all been banned and the Aussies wouldn't have had a competitive test side for years.

[@arkabhattacharya3947]

Honestly speaking I have got no sympathy, I remember Steve Smith consulting the dressing room about whether to take a DRS or not in a test match, then this sandpaper gate. They got exactly what they deserved. Heck if we cheat in our school or college exams we get our papers cancelled, you do it again you get suspended and we are literally nobody and these are world class cricketers sitting on top of the food chain. Then when you are so great a man when you cheat you fall hard as well.

[@mrajaram7676]

But Steve Smith was in prime form 😂 to be frank

[@abhinavchaudhary6342]

Shahid Afridi.. ultra legend 😂😂

[@MrDeeporaj]

Your channel is awesome for us cricket fans...Keep it up

[@sandilemfeka4658]

Where is accountability?

[@stevesalkas9128]

Take 100 wicket of Lillie wasim jmran khan fingernail open the seam up in 80s

[@karanprabhune6887]

Is this documented to defend their actions? Literally everything is captured in the field and u cannot accuse South Africa of tampering unless proven

[@bus5683]

Hahaha yeh South Africa are saints when it comes to cheating and spirit of the game, just look at two of there most outstanding past captains in Faf and cronje. Also considering those commentators were at the ground watching that series you don’t recon they would have a fair idea?

[@wespaul9345]

This is a good summary. Obviously stuff unknown. I find Peter Lalor weak and compromised. He's someone who has the benefit and privelidge to be paid to spectate and report. At the end of the day he had nothing to say of consequence. Weak journalism and a sign of the times.

[@1362pc]

Compare one hour of insanity to a whole series of Murray Mints by the poms in 2005...

[@DonHomersdonut]

Ah whataboutism at its finest

[@jacobburtonswfc]

No video proof, Australia were probably doing this for years

[@simonwhiting6929]

You’re not seriously suggesting that “sandpaper gate” was just an hour of insanity. To argue that you have to believe that this was the first and only time this group of players did anything like this… you just have to watch this team in the years leading up to sandpaper gate to know that this is not the case. Even this Aussie documentary admits they played with no respect for their opponents or the game. The win at all costs mentality finally caught up with Australia…

[@DonHomersdonut]

@@simonwhiting6929 spot on. And the idea that only the Three Musketeers knew about it. The bowlers (who it directly benefited) and Lehman had no idea it was going on. Same old Aussies……..

[@bus5683]

@@DonHomersdonutsame old Aussies always winning ? Another World Cup and a test championships it’s gettin borin

[@bus5683]

I laugh at the many people who are here in the comments calling Aussies cheats saying that had been getting away with it for years, Australian is a disgrace yadda yadda yadda, facts are they cheated, well like no shit, was it a disgrace yes, as a passionate CA fan was i angry and embarrassed of course, but for English South African Indian ect ect fans to get on the high horse and call us cheats have a look in your own back yard, at some stage in your history you’ll find instances of cheating or not in the spirit of the game moments but you’ll never mention that because your hypocrites and you want to take it out on Australian because they win all the time.

[@user-zo8js6ig6z]

Still cheating, winning by any means sadly.

[@michaelx3419]

I’ve never liked the Aussies. We’re raised to despise them in South Africa. But at Lord’s, that was not cheating. You Poms are like children.

[@johnmcmanus6909]

Hahahaha hahahaha! Hypocritical pommie bastards

[@bus5683]

Care to explain?

[@eyecontrol4900]

@@bus5683 he was pissed about the JB runout, seeing as his comment was posted 5months ago while the ashes was still on.

[@bus5683]

@@eyecontrol4900 so a stumping is cheating ?

[@Soubhik12345.]

Utterly stupid decision by CA.Ball tampering should be legalized in my opinion. Bowlers need some assistance in a cricket match.

[@Wally-H]

Good idea - maybe fast bowlers could be allowed to have an electric sander sitting down by the boundary, so they can give the ball a good buffing between overs 🤣

[@ashpikachu1647]

😂😂😂😂😂😂​@@Wally-H

[@MyPaddy2011]

It's simple really. One massively inept management and a squad of overpaid woke supremacists, who think because they can play cricket, it qualifies them to educate me how I should think. Solution: Always go to the paymaster. Ask people like me why I don't bother to go to the cricket anymore and implement suggested changes. I don't appreciate false advertising. When I pay for a ticket to watch the cricket, I do not sign up for optional extras, when I have had no advanced warning. Too late for me to change my opinion now but in 20 years time, people may once again, be able to go to the cricket and not come away feeling patronized and guilty. I hope they survive financially and can draw a crowd again but 10000 at a T20 match does not augur well. Nor does 2000 at the official opening of the cricket season on day one of the first test against the Windies, on home soil. Let's see, shall we!

[@jeff-gj6en]

Chill out bro

[@MyPaddy2011]

@@jeff-gj6en I'll take my example from CA

[@PiyushKavish]

Aus the cheats