‘I am with Cameron Bancroft’ – Aakash Chopra opines on the ball-tampering saga in the 2018 Cape Town Test

Aakash Chopra, the former Indian cricketer, had Cameron Bancroft’s back surrounding the ball-tampering scandal in the 2018 Cape Town Test. In the aftermath of the scandal during the match between Australia and South Africa, Cricket Australia handed bans to then skipper Steve Smith, David Warner and Bancroft for their involvement in the illegal activity.

Recently, Bancroft hinted that the Aussie bowlers were aware of the entire fiasco, albeit he didn’t say so explicitly. The incident remains one of the darkest chapters in Australian cricket ever after more than three years. Speaking on the same, Chopra said that the bowlers must surely have been aware of the changed condition of the ball.

Aakash Chopra opens up

“Actually, I am with Cameron Bancroft. He has not said it, it is ‘self-explanatory’ that everyone knew it. At least, definitely, the bowlers knew for sure that when the ball came in the hand it has been scratched more and the wear and tear are not looking natural,” Chopra was quoted as saying on his YouTube channel.

“The fact is I refuse to believe that the rest of the players of the Australian team, especially the bowlers, it is possible an odd fringe player who is a batsman might not have known that sandpaper was being used, but if the bowlers don’t know that the ball is being tampered with and the condition is being changed, it means you are not telling the truth,” he stated.

Chopra also highlighted how the visiting team’s players have mostly been caught over the matter of ball-tampering. As far as the Newlands incident was concerned, Bancroft was seen stuffing sandpaper inside his pants. The video of the same went viral and the Aussie players were scorned. Tim Paine has been leading the Test team ever since then.

Smith and Warner made their international comebacks in the 2019 edition of the World Cup. Bancroft, on the other hand, forayed back into Test cricket in the Ashes in the same year. However, he lost his place in the team after two games. In the meantime, Bancroft has kept playing domestic cricket and is currently busy with his stint in the county championship.