UTV | COLOMBO – Former Australian captain Steve Smith says he will not challenge sanctions imposed against him by Cricket Australia over his alleged involvement in the ball-tampering saga.
Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft all had an option to appeal the bans handed out to them by Cricket Australia for the ball-tampering incident in Cape Town.
The former skipper though has tweeted saying he will not be challenging the sanction and has “accepted” that the board banned him and Warner for a year to “send a strong message”.
In the Tweet, Smith wrote, “I would give anything to have this behind me and be back representing my country. But I meant what I said about taking full responsibility as Captain of the team. I won’t be challenging the sanctions. They’ve been imposed by CA to send a strong message and I have accepted them.”
Smith’s Tweet comes a day after Australia’s players’ union called for a reduction in the bans, describing them as “disproportionate”.
“The proposed penalties are disproportionate relative to precedent,” Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) President Greg Dyer told a news conference in Sydney.
“We ask that consideration be given to recalibrating the proposed sanctions, to consider options such as suspending or reducing part of the sanction. To consider allowing the players to return to domestic cricket earlier, for example, as part of their rehabilitation.”
