Cameron Bancroft on Wednesday revealed his decision to not contest the punishment – a nine-month ban from international and domestic cricket – meted out to him by Cricket Australia (CA) for his involvement in the infamous ball-tampering incident in South Africa.
Today I lodged the paperwork with Cricket Australia and will be accepting the sanction handed down. I would love to put this behind me and will do whatever it takes to earn back the trust of the Australian public. Thank you to all those who have sent messages of support
— Cameron Bancroft (@cbancroft4) April 4, 2018
Bancroft had rubbed the ball with sandpaper to aid his team’s bowlers achieve reverse-swing against hosts South Africa. Bancroft was to have played with English county team Somerset but the deal was cancelled after his involvement in the embarrassing episode.
His statement came just hours after Steve Smith’s decision to not appeal against the Australian cricket board’s sanction of a one-year ban on him.
“I would give anything to have this behind me and be back representing my country. But I meant what I said about taking full responsibility as Captain of the team,” Smith tweeted. “I won’t be challenging the sanctions. They’ve been imposed by CA to send a strong message and I have accepted them.”
This leaves only David Warner, one of the three players indicted for ball-tampering, to decide whether he’ll file an appeal against his sanction. Warner has until 5pm (Australian time) on Thursday to advise CA of his intentions in relation to the sanctions.