Australia Was “Out Of Control” Before The Ball-Tampering Scandal:
Ian Gould, a former international umpire recalled his participation in the well-known Newlands Test and said that Australia was “out of control” much before the ball-tampering scandal.
Ian Gould got retirement from the international games after the World Cup 2019. And he was the TV official at the time of the Cape Town Test and broadcasted what had been marked on TV footage of Cameron Bancroft putting sandpaper under his trousers to the umpires present on the field.
The consequence of the ball-tampering scandal was very big and quick with Steven Smith discarded from the captain role and banned for 1 year along with David Warner and Bancroft was suspended for nine months.
Ian Gould accepted that he couldn’t believe what he was seeing on the TV screens.
While doing promotion of his autobiography “Gunner – My Life in Cricket”, Gould told to the Daily Telegraph “ At that time I didn’t realize what the impact would be. If you look back on this issue now, Australians were out of control maybe two years, probably three years or before that but not in this sense, probably – friendly, behavioral, being quite average people.”
“But when this matter came to me, I didn’t think the PM of Australia was going to take action against these three guys. All I thought was- Jesus, how do I put the sandpaper out to the boys on the ground without doing it an overreaction. It was just like on Mastermind when the focus is upon you and you are doing.”
“ While the director said to me “ He is putting something under his trousers”, I started giggling, because that thing didn’t feel quite right. But what the actions had taken was for the betterment of Australian cricket and world of cricket.”
Ian Gould also revealed that still he has the balls that were utilized in the Newlands Test, locked away in London, although by looking at those balls would not expose the thing that played out that day.
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