Ashes 2019: England fans mock Steve Smith at the Edgbaston

Back in March 2018, Steve Smith, the former Australian cricketer, was involved in the shameful ball-tampering scandal at the Newlands in Cape Town. He was subsequently handed a one-year suspension by Cricket Australia (CA). The right-handed batsman, along with David Warner made his return to the national team in the recently-concluded World Cup in England and Wales.

He got some decent knocks under his belt and showed his class and calibre to play at the highest level. Smith was also selected in the squad for the ongoing Ashes. In the shambolic incident last year, Cameron Bancroft also got suspended. In the Test series, all three-Warner, Smith and Bancroft- are playing. The first Test of the series at the Edgbaston in Birmingham is currently underway.

It was earlier learnt that the trio could be in for some hostile treatment from the English crowd when they take the field in the high-profile series. As far as Smith is concerned, he didn’t have to wait much longer before coming to bat after the visitors won the toss and elected to bat first. Warner and Bancroft couldn’t survive the early burst and fell prey to speedster Stuart Broad.

English fans ridicule Steve Smith

Smith joined Usman Khawaja, who was also making a comeback after recovering from the hamstring injury, in the middle. Amidst his stint on the pitch, Smith also faced the wrath of the crowd present at the venue. Three fans on the stands wore Smith’s mask. In them, Smith was seen shedding tears, something which rolls the clock back to his press conference after the tampering incident.

During the media interaction, Smith broke down, admitting his mistake. His father was behind him, consoling his son. It was a massive moment for Smith, who is regarded as one of the best batters doing the rounds in world cricket. Warner also had to face in different behaviour from the crowd.

After the southpaw was dismissed cheaply, the England fans brought out Sandpaper and displayed. The Ashes is known to produce some high-voltage moments and it has started in an intensified manner. For Smith and Warner, it may not be the first them when they have to face the crowd in the series.

Here is the picture of fans mocking Smith

No chill from these England fans…#bbccricket #ENGvAUS #Ashes https://t.co/HdW7hHjTMZ

— Test Match Special (@bbctms) August 1, 2019