Steve Smith Reflects on Sandpapergate Trauma

Steve Smith, the Australian cricketer, has described the Sandpapergate scandal of 2018 as a "traumatic experience" that continues to affect him psychologically. The incident, which occurred during a Test series against South Africa in Cape Town, resulted in Smith being banned from all cricket for 12 months and stripped of the captaincy. David Warner received the same penalty, while Cameron Bancroft was banned for nine months.

Smith, who has since returned to the team and regained a leadership role as vice-captain, shared his feelings about the aftermath of the scandal ahead of Australia's first Test series back in South Africa since the controversy. He admitted to feeling anxious around cameras, stating that the flash of a camera can trigger recollections of the traumatic event.

Recounting the immediate period following the ban, Smith recalled being "mobbed" by media at Johannesburg airport and the subsequent press conference. "I still have little flashbacks here and there of it," he said. "I felt like I was kind of thrown to the wolves through [Johannesburg] airport. I didn't have any support there at all. It was certainly a difficult period, particularly the initial few days after. The mental state I was in was not great."

He has attempted to block out memories of 2018, stating, "I've tried to kind of erase a lot of 2018 and what happened. I can't remember a lot about the series. I've tried to block most of it out of my memory bank."

Smith expressed that he does not anticipate a similar reception in South Africa to the taunts he has faced from fans in England and elsewhere. "It's something I'm kind of used to," he said. "I've copped a lot at times away from home, at different venues across my career, and it's something that I take in my own stride. I use it as motivation to try and go out and do well, and try and take a positive from it."