Australia skipper Steve Smith’s woes might not end with a one-match suspension for his role in the ball tampering row that marred his side’s 322-run loss against South Africa in the third Test.
The board might come down heavily on his deputy, David Warner, as well.
The duo stood down from their positions on Sunday, a day after the row erupted. Smith had even clarified on Saturday that he did not feel the need to step down as skipper of the national team.
The ICC on Sunday handed Smith a one-match ban and deducted his match fees for the Cape Town Test. His team-mate Cameron Bancroft was given three demerit points and fined 75% of his take-away from the match.
These might just be the start of a long list of sanctions that might be handed down to the guilty parties. Under CA’s code of behaviour, a player can face up to a life for cheating, ESPNcricinfo reported.
CA chief executive James Sutherland on Sunday had ordered an investigation into the row and deputed the board’s integrity head Iain Roy to travel to South Africa to understand the origin of the plan, which Smith claims to have been concocted by the “leadership group” of the team for the duration of the Test.
Roy and team performance manager Pat Howard travelled to Cape Town on Sunday, the report stated.
Earlier, Smith and Warner had stepped down from the roles amid rising public sentiment in their country seeking action. The Australian Sports Commission even stepped into demand that the duo be stripped of their duties as leaders.
