Ahead of Australia’s first Test series in South Africa since 2018, local broadcaster SuperSport posted a promotion saying its cameras “will be sharp.” The first match in the series is scheduled to begin in Durban on October 9.
Before Australia’s first Test series in South Africa since 2018, the local broadcaster SuperSport recalled the Sandpapergate scandal. In a short promotion for the three-match series, it said its cameras “will be sharp.” The first Test is scheduled to start on October 9 at Kingsmead in Durban.
The joke refers to the third Test at Newlands in Cape Town on March 24, 2018. Television cameras recorded Australian batter Cameron Bancroft using a small yellow object on the ball and then hiding it in his trousers. The footage was shown on the stadium’s big screen. The International Cricket Council announced charges against Bancroft and a sanction, and subsequent investigations led to penalties for members of the Australian team.
Several players from that match remain in Australia’s current squad: Steve Smith, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon. Smith, then the team’s captain, is now its vice-captain. The second Test is scheduled to begin in Gqeberha on October 18, and the third at Newlands on October 27. South Africa are the reigning World Test Championship winners after beating Australia in last year’s final.