It has been eight years since Australia arrived in South Africa as the Ashes winners, carrying the confidence of a side that had just beaten England 4-0 at home. But about a month later, the scenes had changed dramatically.
When they left the African shores, they had been beaten 3-1 in the series, their captain and vice-captain had been banned, three of their players had been sent home mid-tour, and the culture of Australian cricket was under serious scrutiny.
Three thousand, one hundred and eleven days have gone by, and now the Aussies are back in South Africa. Coincidentally, they stand almost exactly where the story began. The opening Test of the upcoming series will be played at Kingsmead, Durban, where they won the first match of the 2018 tour and took a 1-0 lead.
By the time this series reaches its culmination, the caravan will return to the same venue that witnessed one of the darkest controversies in the cricketing universe.
Sandpapergate left such an indelible impression on our minds that we often forget what had already transpired in that series before Cameron Bancroft ever pulled out a small yellow thing from his pocket.
{{/usCountry}}Sandpapergate left such an indelible impression on our minds that we often forget what had already transpired in that series before Cameron Bancroft ever pulled out a small yellow thing from his pocket.
{{/usCountry}}The first match was won by Australia by 118 runs, on the back of a brilliant nine-wicket haul from Mitchell Starc. But off the field, the temperature was already rising for very different reasons. Nathan Lyon was fined for dropping the ball near AB de Villiers after his run-out. Then David Warner and Quinton de Kock had an ugly confrontation on the players’ staircase.
Port Elizabeth added more fuel. The then Cricket South Africa president, Chris Nenzani, issued an apology after CSA executives Clive Eksteen and Altaaf Kaazi were photographed with spectators wearing Sonny Bill Williams masks, aimed at Warner and his family. Nenzani said, “On behalf of CSA, I extend my sincere apologies to the board of Cricket Australia, its officials, team management, players and their families.”
On the field, Kagiso Rabada decimated the Australian batting, picking up 11 wickets. AB de Villiers delivered a masterclass, scoring an unbeaten 126 as the hosts won the match and levelled the series. Rabada was then suspended for shoulder contact with Steve Smith. However, the ban was lifted after an appeal. So, by the time Newlands got ready to host the third match of the series, the atmosphere was already reaching boiling point.
Then came Newlands
On the third day of the match, broadcast footage caught Cameron Bancroft rubbing the ball with a small yellow object before hiding it back inside his pocket. Steve Smith admitted that senior players had been involved in whatever was transpiring on the field.
“It was the leadership group’s idea… I am not proud of what’s happened,” Smith said after the play. The initial explanation was that Bancroft had used granules stuck to tape to tamper with the ball. However, Cricket Australia revealed that it was sandpaper on further investigation. Bancroft subsequently admitted: “Yes, I lied about the sandpaper.”
As the investigation continued, the revelations became damning. It was established that Warner, the vice-captain of that side, had devised the plan and asked Bancroft to carry it out. Smith, the captain, had prior knowledge but failed to stop it.
The ramifications were immediate. Smith and Warner were banned for 12 months, while Bancroft faced a nine-month suspension. All three were sent home, and Tim Paine took over the captaincy. Later, Smith accepted responsibility, saying, “I’m the captain, it’s on my watch.” Darren Lehmann, the head coach of the team, was cleared of having any
prior knowledge. Yet, he stepped down from his post. “I’m ultimately responsible for the culture of the team,” Lehmann said while announcing his decision. Former Australian opener Ed Cowan was more scathing while speaking about the cricketing values inside the team: “The team’s culture is not one befitting of the Australian cricket team.”
Things grew gloomier on the field as well. Australia lost in Johannesburg by a staggering 492-run margin and surrendered the series 3-1. It gave South Africa its first home Test series victory over Australia in 48 years.
The repercussions extended far beyond the series. Cricket Australia commissioned an independent cultural review. The Ethics Centre review delivered a memorable assessment. It rejected the simple “win at all costs” mentality in Australian cricket, and said that CA had established a culture of “winning without counting the costs.”
Newlands no longer remained confined to a piece of sandpaper or an act of ball tampering. It forced Australian cricket to change how it approaches the game.
Now, eight years later, Australia are back. They still have a few players—Steve Smith, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon—who lived through that tumultuous series. They will try to treat this as just another series. But when the caravan eventually reaches Newlands, escaping the shadow of that infamous tour might become impossible.
Now, after eight years, as Australia return to South Africa, there are members in the squad who lived through that tour. Steve Smith, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon remember exactly what happened when Australia last visited South Africa. Although they will try to treat it as another series, once it reaches Newlands, it will be difficult to keep discussions about the infamous incident at bay.