"I don't think it is fair to say that he is the only one who's copped it": Clarke on Warner's remark on Sandpaper Gate scandal

New Delhi [India], June 20 : Australia World Cup-winning skipper Michael Clarke rebuked David Warner's recent claims on the Sandpaper Gate scandal that he was the only player to bear the brunt.
Clarke acknowledged that Warner faced pressure, but he added that other players like Cameron Bancroft and Steve Smith have also been affected by the scandal.
"I understand where Davey comes from. I think parts of what he said are fair enough. I don't think he has got the timing right. I don't think it is fair to say that he is the only one who's copped it. I think Cameron Bancroft has certainly copped it, and it is the reason he is not in the Australian Test team, because of what happened years ago. Steve Smith, obviously, copped it and lost the Australia captaincy," Michael Clarke said on ESPN's Around the Wicket.
The infamous ball-tampering scandal happened during the Cape Town Test between The Baggy Greens and South Africa in 2018 and the explosive opening batter was handed a one-year ban from competitive cricket and a lifetime ban from captaincy.
Then-captain Steve Smith and his deputy Warner, along with opener Cameron Bancroft, were involved in the infamous ball-tampering scandal in South Africa in 2018. Warner and Smith were banned from cricket for a year by Cricket Australia (CA). Meanwhile, Bancroft served a nine-month suspension from cricket.
This comes after Warner spoke about the scandal and said he has always been the only one who's ever coped much with this.
"Coming back since 2018, I've probably been the only one that's ever copped a lot of flak. Whether it's people who don't like the Australian cricket team or don't like me, I've always been that person who has copped it," Warner told reporters ahead of Australia's Super 8 clash with Bangladesh via Fox Sports.
The left-handed batter appealed to lift his lifetime captaincy ban after Aaron Finch's retirement. However, Cricket Australia denied Warner's request when the team was seeking a new white-ball captain after Finch's retirement.
Clarke further stated that other players in the team would prefer for this to be not spoken about right now.
"Davey has copped it, there is certainly no doubt about it. I just don't think the timing is probably right. I think this probably would have been better suited at the end of the World Cup rather than in the middle of the World Cup. There are probably other players in the team that would prefer for this to be not spoken about right now," Clarke added.
Australia are currently participating in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 which is taking place in the West Indies and the United States. The Men in Yellow have qualified for the Super 8 of the marquee event and they will be facing Bangladesh on Friday at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua and Barbuda.