Former Australian pacer Jason Gillespie lashed out on senior Australian cricketers for conducting the ball-tampering incident during the third Test against the hosts South Africa at Cape Town. Gillespie also believes that the new leaders will rise up but they will not be Steven Smith or David Warner.
The ball-tampering saga is not going to end soon as the captain Steven Smith and vice-captain David Warner resigned from their leadership roles. Steven Smith has also handed one-Test ban for that ball-tampering incident along with 100% match-fees fined.
Also read: Bishan Singh Bedi’s Verdict On Australian Ball-tampering Case
Talking about that incident, Gillespie remarked as a pre-planned cheating. He wrote in the Guardian, “This was pre-planned cheating. It may have been implemented by a junior player in Cameron Bancroft but it came with the backing and knowledge of the leadership group, a core of senior guys in the Australian set-up. The reputation of a team who were already drawing scorn for their behaviour has been torched.”
Gillespie brought out the last year’s huge battle between the Australian board and the national players regarding the earning, which was later sorted out. Gillespie also wrote that CA (Cricket Australia) should not deserve this awkward period from the cricketers.
The 42-years old added on that, “As a sport, we are quick to tear into administrators at times but it is hard not to have sympathy for James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive, in this instance. He should not be put in a situation by the players where he has to apologise to the supporters and the wider public. One could see the hurt when he did.
“Last year was dominated by a huge battle between players and the board, with the former earning an incredible deal by sticking together and staying strong. I have no problem with that whatsoever. But then to throw that goodwill back in the face of their employers and the public in this way is simply terrible.”
Also read: Cricket Australia To Give Final Verdict On Ball-Tampering Fiasco On Wednesday
Gillespie also wrote that the team need to rebuild the public trust as soon as possible. He wrote, “So the Australian men’s team will now need to rebuild public trust from scratch. What must happen is a period of serious introspection. There are some fine individuals in the set-up, trust me, but as a team, they need to re-examine how they play the game, along with their behaviour and image overall.”
The former Australian pacer also believes that the new leaders will rise up and take the side forward. He concluded, “Australian cricket will survive this and provided there is some honesty with the camp, it will hopefully emerge in better shape. New leaders will rise up and take the side forward. But it will not be Smith and it will not be Warner.”
