“You scratch it and we change the ball,” Craig said. “There will be no more discussion, let’s play.”
Hours after the match ended, a statement from CA said the ball had “deteriorated” and that no further action would be taken. “The captain and coach of both teams were informed of the decision before the start of the game,” the statement added.
“The final decision rests with CA, doesn’t it?” Warner said. “I think they’ve obviously squashed it as quickly as they could, given that India is coming here this summer. But if the referees feel that something happened, I’m sure there will be a follow-up. I think the referees or the match referee should be here answering questions.”
“I think the match referee should go out and address his own staff, which are the referees. And if they stick to the referee’s decisions, you have to defend that. That is obviously a statement that CA has to publish. I have not seen nothing.”
It is understood that there is no footage available of anything untoward being done to the ball.
Under the laws, a five-run penalty is imposed if umpires change the ball after deeming it to have been unfairly tampered with. However, CA’s playing conditions include an additional clause that means umpires can make a change without implementing penalty runs if it is not clear how the ball was damaged.
“The punishment that was imposed was for a reason and I fully accept that,” he said. “You’ll always be disappointed that you can’t lead, but what’s done is done, and I got over that.
“But I have the opportunity to lead the Thunder and share my great knowledge about the game and I hope that some of the young people can come ask me some questions after the game, decisions that I have made or some mistakes that I might have made and have that confidence and I hope one day they can become captains too.”
