Australian suspended Test opening batsman Cameron Bancroft has admitted that he made a bad decision to try the ball-tampering and also claimed that the media reacted appropriately to the situation.
During the Cape Town Test against South Africa in last March, Bancroft deliberately tried to change the ball condition by using sandpaper. While his attempt was exposed by the on-field video cameras, Cricket Australia (CA) suspended him for nine months from the international and domestic cricket, after proper investigation.
Talking about the media reaction on that incident, Bancroft said according to the Cricket Australia website, “When you’re in the media a lot, good or bad, it can be really challenging to deal with, really changeling to digest the different opinion that flies around. Because that’s what it was, there was a lot of opinion, a lot of people saying things. For me, in that situation, it was about me and my mistake and the poor decision I made.”
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He further said that the media reacted appropriately to the situation while he wants to forgive himself for taking such a bad decision.
The 25-year-old said, “What anyone else thought or said didn’t change the fact that I made a really bad decision and I’ve had to really forgive myself for that error I made. It’s all a part of moving forward with it all. The media reacted appropriately to the situation and what happened and I have no anger or judgement or resentment for that.”
The right-handed batsman has claimed that he is now feeling really good as he has come out from that incident and he is looking forward to playing the Darwin cricket tournament.
The Australian cricketer said, “Right now I’m feeling really good. The last couple of months have been a bit of a rollercoaster. You certainly ride the waves of grieving. There’s been times where I’ve felt really sad, there’s been times where I’ve felt really angry. But overall, I’ve worked really hard on myself, been really busy with a lot of things and right now it’s just another step forward, heading up to Darwin to play some cricket and I’m really looking forward to it.”
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Coming to the ball-tampering incident, it was later revealed that the captain Steven Smith and vice-captain David Warner played the leadership roles to conduct that incident. As a result, both the senior cricketers suffered one-year banned from the international and domestic cricket by CA.
While Bancroft admitted that he can’t change that incident, he also said they are in good touch regularly and fighting together to come out from that incident quickly.
Talking about his senior duo, Bancroft said, “I can’t change what happened in South Africa and that’s something I’m completely accountable for. Everything since South Africa I’ve moved towards have been steps closer to one day getting back and playing cricket for Australia again. I speak to them quite regularly, at least every week.
“Whether that’s a phone call or messages, they’re obviously very busy with some things too. They’re two really great people and we’ve been looking after each other. That’s a value that we really hold closely at the WACA, is this idea of looking after your mates. We’ve being going through all of this together and we definitely look out for each other, that’s for sure.”
