Cameron Bancroft names the player who encouraged him to tamper with the ball

Cameron Bancroft was looking set for a good run in international cricket after impressing in the home Ashes as well as series in South Africa. Scores of 53, 38, 24 and 77 in tough and bouncy conditions of South Africa pretty much showed that Bancroft had what it takes to excel at the highest stage of the game.

However, his world came crashing down when he was caught red-handed tampering with the ball. The right-handed batsman was caught by the cameras applying sandpaper to alter the ball’s conditions and the repercussions soon followed. Consequently, a promising career took an unexpected and unfortunate turn. While the ICC fined him, Cricket Australia slapped a lengthy ban on him as well as on Steve Smith and David Warner for their roles in the scandal.

Smith and Warner received a 12-month ban while Bancroft was barred from playing international and first-class cricket for 9 months.

Bancroft makes a startling revelation

Bancroft’s ban is all set to end on December 29 following which he will take part in the ongoing Big Bash League for the Perth Scorchers. And just days ahead of his BBL return, he made a starting revelation about the scandal, revealing that it was Warner who encouraged him to tamper with the ball. He further said that he went ahead with Warner’s suggestions to get importance from his teammates.

“Dave [Warner] suggested to me to carry the action out on the ball given the situation we were in in the game and I didn’t know any better,” Bancroft told Fox Sports. “I didn’t know any better because I just wanted to fit in and feel valued, really — as simple as that.”

“The decision was based around my values, what I valued at the time and I valued fitting in … you hope that fitting in earns you respect and with that, I guess, there came a pretty big cost for the mistake. I would have gone to bed and I would have felt like I had let everybody down. I would have felt like I had let the team down. I would have left like I had hurt our chances to win the game of cricket,” he added.

The young opener did not blame Warner for the scandal and took the responsibility on him for picking the wrong option. “I take no other responsibility but the responsibility I have on myself and my own actions because I am not a victim. I had a choice and I made a massive mistake and that is what is in my control,” he added.

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