Ball-Tampering Row: Steve Waugh Accuses Fraternity of Over-Reaction, Concedes Aussie Team Were 'Out of Control'

World Cup-winning captain of Australia, Steve Waugh, accused the fraternity of overaction to the ball-tampering issue, which halted the careers of the captain, Steven Smith and vice-captain, David Warner for one year.

Also, the two were the batting mainstays for Australia in the longer formats of the game. Apart from the blow, a review committee was established to look at the ‘Aussie culture’ in the dressing room.

Interestingly, as mentioned by Ricky Ponting earlier, the issue was not talked about during the Ashes series win. Plus, the atmosphere during the South African series was already flaring up before the entire events unfolded at Cape Town.

“People are talking about no sledging in the game of cricket. You’ve got to be careful how you play, but the Australian way is always to be combative, to be positive and to have a bit of a chat out on the field,” Steve Waugh told cricket.co.au.

CA recently appointed Justin Langer as the new coach of the Australian team. Waugh wanted his former teammate to ensure that the Aussie brand of cricket remains the same.

‘There was no need for a review six months ago’, claims Waugh

“As long as it doesn’t cross the line, we’ve got to play to our style. So hopefully Justin (Langer) will keep that intact. There’s always a knee-jerk reaction when things don’t go well, and you have reviews,” mentioned the 52-year old.

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“As Ricky Ponting said, there was no need for a review six months ago when the side was beating England 4-0 in the Ashes. We’ve got to be really careful that we don’t overreact to it,” further augmented Waugh.

Further, Waugh talked about the incidents in the series where Nathan Lyon dropped the ball on AB de Villiers chest, post his run-out dismissal.

The Australian appealed the team had to look at their over the top celebrations but insisted that these matters shouldn’t get scrutinized.

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“There have probably been occasions where the team has looked a little bit out of control on the field. Especially with the chat and the way they’ve reacted after they’ve taken a wicket,” said Waugh.

“AB de Villiers was a case in mind; he’s the best batsman in the world, and they dropped the ball at his feet, and they carried on with the extra celebrations.” added the Australian.

“You don’t need that sort of stuff. Once you’ve got the wicket. You’ve got the wicket. So I think we’ve got to pull it back a little bit. But we don’t want to delve too deep and cause issues that maybe aren’t there.” concluded Steve Waugh.