English blogger James Morgan writes that Aussie skipper Steve Smith "was desperate to stay in and win the game for his country, and this prompted him to made an understandable but extremely unfortunate error", referring to the DRS incident in the second Test against India in Bengaluru.
Is Steve Smith, the golden boy of Australian cricket, a cheat? I’m going to stick my neck out and say that he’s not. But then again, I don’t think too many would argue that Smith cheated, or at least tried to cheat, when he looked at the balcony for advice before deciding whether to review his dismissal in the second innings in Bengaluru.
My personal view is that Smith simply forgot himself at an emotional moment when the game was on the line. He was desperate to stay in and win the game for his country, and this prompted him to made an understandable but extremely unfortunate error.
Does this mean that Smith is the spawn of something sinister and should be harangued out of cricket? Although I have no concrete information on Smith’s exact lineage I’m inclined to say ‘no’. Why? Because I bet most teams have sought off-field advice over DRS reviews (or at least tried to) over the years. They just haven’t been caught.
Consequently, because I sense Smith’s crime was merely trying to cheat so blatantly, rather than subtly like everyone else, I think calls for a ban are over the top. I’d simply reprimand him, fine him, and make Smith play the next test from the confines of a hamster ball. Well, he does look like a hamster doesn’t he?
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Du Plessis surprised at lack of action in Smith DRS-gateread next
South Africa Test skipper Faf du Plessis has expressed his surprise that neither Virat Kohli nor Steven Smith was charged for breaching the ICC's code of conduct in the second Test in Bengaluru. He felt this was a bigger controversy compared to Mint-gate that he was involved in Australia last year.
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