Smith says he has decided to step down from captaincy of RR so that the team can prepare for the IPL “without the ongoing distractions”.
Amidst calls of life ban for his role in the ball-tempering scandal, Australian skipper Steve Smith has decided to step down as captain of IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals on Monday.
As a result, Royals swiftly handed over the captaincy to India Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane. The under-fire Smith will, however, continue to be a part of the franchise for the IPL starting April 7.
Having been suspended for its role in 2013 spot-fixing scandal, Royals certainly were eager to bring an end to this controversy where Cameron Bancroft was asked by Smith to engage in cheating to influence the result of the game.
Smith says he has decided to step down from captaincy of RR so that the team can prepare for the IPL “without the ongoing distractions”.
Smith has been part of the Royals since 2014, although the team have not been part of the IPL for the past two years due to spot-fixing scandal — which saw Smith join Rising Pune Supergiants. However, the Rajasthan-based outfit named Aussie its skipper soon after the IPL auctions in February.
“Rajasthan Royals will do everything possible to protect the values and the integrity of the game,” co-owner of team Manoj Badale termed the incident as ‘clearly wrong’.
“We agree with Steve’s decision to step down as captain, and we are fortunate to have such a capable successor with Ajinkya Rahane. It is important that all cricket fans retain a balanced perspective on the situation. What happened in South Africa was clearly wrong, especially given that it appears to have been pre-meditated,” he added.
The 28-year-old Smith has been awaiting the outcome of an investigation by Cricket Australia into the incident that saw Bancroft using a piece of yellow tape to gather dirt from the pitch to rough up the ball on the instruction of “leadership group”.
“The incident in Cape Town has certainly disturbed the cricket world,” said Zubin Bharucha, head of cricket for Royals.
Smith has already been handed a one-match suspension from the ICC, along with four demerit points and a 100 per cent fine of his match fee, while Bancroft got three demerit points and a 75 per cent fine.
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