Ipl 2018 news: Steve Smith, Warner’s IPL futures to be decided in the next couple of days according rajeev shukla
In the wake of the ball-tampering controversy that hit the Australian Cricket in their ongoing third Test against South Africa, there have been speculations that the Steve Smith Indian Premier League franchises Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad will sack and David Warner as their respective captains. IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla on Sunday said Rajasthan Royals will wait and see what sanctions the ICC imposes on Steve Smith before taking a call on his future as the franchise’s captain, following a ball-tampering scandal that prompted, among others, even Australia’s prime minister to react. Smith and his deputy David Warner were made to step down from their respective posts after the skipper admitted to having orchestrated ball tampering on the third day of the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town.
At the close of play on Day 3 in Newlands, Smith and Cameron Bancroft made the startling admission in a press conference about the leadership group of the team planning and resorting to ball tampering in order to gain some sort of advantage in a Test that was starting to sway in South Africa’s favour. That came after Bancroft was clearly captured on cameras, carrying out the transgression – using a yellow tape to scruff up the ball. Once the broadcasters repeatedly aired the footage and even displayed it on the giant screen, Bancroft was seen slipping the yellow tape inside his trousers.
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Even as Smith refused to give up captaincy during the course of that media addressal, he and his deputy, Warner, stood down from their respective posts, and wicketkeeper Tim Paine was tasked with standing in for the remainder of the Test.On Sunday, ICC followed their protocol and issued a one-Test suspension and a 100 percent match fee fine for Smith. Bancroft, the man in the eye of the storm, was fined 75 percent of the match fee and had three demerit points added to his record.The BCCI and Rajasthan Royals will like to wait for the ICC to announce the official sanction against Steve Smith. As of now, no decision will be taken either by the board or the franchise,” Shukla today told PTI.
The administrator added, “We will only take a call depending on the magnitude of sanction. Smith is an important player for Royals and their skipper. It’s only fair that they wait.”
When asked about Cricket Australia’s decision to sack both Smith and Warner, Shukla said: “That’s an internal issue of Cricket Australia. The BCCI or IPL Governing Council have got nothing to do with it. Our only concern is ICC.”
Another senior BCCI official, privy to the development, gave a practical view. “Both Smith and Warner are an integral part of IPL as marquee players. We can’t just take away their contracts for one incident. Also if ICC gives a one-Test ban or three demerit points, how can we impose hefty sanctions.
“Also Rajasthan is coming back this year. They need Smith both as a brand and a player,” the senior office-bearer said.