"He is just doing it to get something off his chest, he won't be the last" - Australian bowling coach responds to Cameron Bancroft's comments

Australia’s bowling coach at the time of the ball-tampering scandal, David Saker, feels that Cameron Bancroft's recent comments were his way of 'getting something off his chest'. Saker asserted on Sunday that irrespective of what Bancroft said, the incident and its consequent blame game will dog Australia for years to come.

Cameron Bancroft, who was caught using sandpaper on the ball in the 2018 Test against South Africa, suggested that some of the Australian bowlers were also privy to him carrying sandpaper to the field. However, only Cameron Bancroft, then skipper Steve Smith and David Warner were indicted in the initial investigation.

Saker defended Cameron Bancroft, saying he is a 'nice guy' caught in the midst of a 'finger pointing' spree. He wistfully added that the whole team has now acknowledged the gravity of their 'monumental mistake.'

“Cameron’s a very nice guy. He’s just doing it to get something off his chest ... He’s not going to be the last. You could point your finger at me, you could point your finger at Boof [then coach Darren Lehmann], could you point it at other people, of course you could. The disappointing thing is it’s never going to go away. Regardless of what’s said. We all know that we made a monumental mistake. The gravity wasn’t as plain until it all came out,” Saker told smh.com.au.

"Obviously what I did benefits bowlers and the awareness around that, probably, is self-explanatory." 😱😱😱Cameron Bancroft has made a stunning admission about the Cape Town ball-tampering scandal >>> https://t.co/WjdcfC0yED pic.twitter.com/csv6zNxfYS

— Fox Cricket (@FoxCricket) May 15, 2021

Saker was in charge of the much-vaunted bowling quadrant - Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon - who played in the Newlands Test alongside Mitchell Marsh. Steve Smith, without naming anyone, at the time had said a certain 'leadership group' knew about the plot.

Saker also speaks on CA's possible reinvestigation after Cameron Bancroft's comments

David Saker

Now that Cricket Australia (CA) has expressed its openness to reinvestigating the facts after Cameron Bancroft's comments, Saker said it wouldn't be 'unfair'. He, however, also reiterated that even if the case is reopened, it will never cease to haunt the country, akin to Trevor Chappell's underarm ball incident.

“I don’t think it’d be unfair. I just don’t know what they’re going to find out. It’s like the underarm, it’s never going to go away,” signed off Saker.

Cameron Bancroft served a 9-month ban from all forms of cricket and since his return, is struggling to make it back to the international side. However, his comments might have the biggest impact on Smith, who had just started building some momentum for his return to the helm of the national side.

"I think Steve Smith Deserves to be considered as Australia Next Captain, I would definitely Support him Getting that job. When I played under him (Steve Smith), he was excellent as Captain." - Tim Paine

— CricketMAN2 (@man4_cricket) May 13, 2021