“It was a harsh penalty”: Allan Border wants David Warner’s captaincy ban to be lifted

Allan Border has said that he wants the captaincy ban of David Warner to be lifted that was implemented after the sandpaper gate.

The sandpaper gate is one of the darkest spots in the history of Australian cricket. During the test series against South Africa in 2018, Cameron Bancroft used sandpaper to change the condition of the ball which was caught on camera. It was later revealed that the whole leadership unit was involved in the process.

The repercussions of that incident were not ideal for Australian cricket. Cameron Bancroft was banned for nine months, whereas David Warner & Steve Smith were banned for 12 months. Head coach Darren Lehmann also stepped down from his position.

Both Warner and Smith made their return in the ICC World Cup 2019, and they still are regulars in the side. Smith is even back in the captaincy nominations, but the lifetime captaincy ban of David Warner is yet to be lifted.

Also Read: Allan Border wants Travis Head to learn from Matthew Hayden

Allan Border calls against David Warner’s captaincy ban

Australian legend Allan Border wants the captaincy ban of David Warner to be lifted as he believes that it is time to move on from the matter. Border has said that it was already a harsh penalty as ball tempering has been there for very long. He insists that Warner has already served enough, and it is the right time to remove his ban.

“It was a harsh penalty in the first place let’s get on with it; they’ve served their time. I know that every other side’s doing exactly what we were caught doing. (If) all the captains put their hand on their heart and say ‘I wasn’t doing anything similar’, they’d be telling ‘porky pies’ (lies),” Allan Border said to fox sports.

“The bans those boys copped were a bit over the top for the crime, given the knowledge around the cricket fraternity where this has been going on.”

“They all had to change the way they went about their cricket.”

Has Chris Gayle just checked Warner’s pocket for sandpaper 🤣🤣#T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/QUMM1ylFqp

— England’s Barmy Army (@TheBarmyArmy) November 6, 2021

After the Sandpaper gate, Sunrisers Hyderabad also removed David Warner from the captaincy, only to reinstate him back in the IPL 2021 season. However, he was sacked mid-season due to poor performances of the team.