When David Warner, Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft were picked for the first Test against England, they knew they were going to get a lot of flak from the English fans. This is the first time they were all playing in a Test since the ball tampering controversy back in 2018. For the uninitiated, let’s recap. In a match vs South Africa, Cameron Bancroft was spotted using sandpaper to change the ball texture. The then skipper Smith and his deputy Warner admitted being involved and as a result Cricket Australia handed all three bans.
Now, after over a year, all three were back for an Ashes Test. Needless to say, it would not be an easy re-introduction to the oldest version of the game.
Cricbuzz
Tim Paine won the toss and opted to bat. And sure enough, the English fans were in no mood to make Warner’s stay easier. Stuart Broad saw the back of him early and as he walked off, he was booed and even sandpapers were waved to taunt him about the scandal that put a black mark on his career. A little too far it seems? Well it is cricket’s oldest rivalry, even more intense than India vs Pakistan, yes, there, I said it. Judge me for all I care.
Bancroft fell cheaply too and also got his share of boos, albeit to a lesser degree. But the man of the day was Smith. He walked into a chorus of boos, something he was expecting and well, pretty much prepared for. But he is a fighter to the core. He put his head down and even as the rest of them tumbled, steadily accumulated the runs. The Aussies were reeling at 122/8 when Smith rallied the likes of Peter Siddle (44) and Nathan Lyon (12*) to put on stands worth 88 and 74 respectively. 284 was a massive improvement and he finished with 144. By the time he was done, the same crowd that had been booing him was cheering a valiant knock. The cheers had drowned out the boos and it takes a special kind of player to do that. Yes, he may not be popular with them, but he has certainly won their respect.
Cricinfo
It is only the first day of five Tests that are to be played. This may be the most controversial Ashes yet, not in terms of incidents, but players who have been ‘tainted’ so to speak. But other players have made it back from the cold so to speak. Shane Warne served a one-year doping ban and came back stronger, Herschelle Gibbs was out for 6 months for match-fixing and returned to serve South Africa for a decade and not to mention Mohammad Amir, who was out for 5 years due to spot-fixing and is now Pakistan’s premier bowler.
Cricinfo
So this trio can pick itself up as well. Smith has already taken the first step, Warner had a good World Cup just before this and no reason why Bancroft cannot redeem himself. So let’s wait and watch what happens.