Former England spinner Monty Panesar fires back at Steve Smith as bizarre Ashes feud explodes
The bizarre Ashes feud between Steve Smith and former England spinner Monty Panesar has taken another turn, with Panesar now blatantly calling the veteran Aussie a “cheat”.
The whole thing started when Panesar urged England players to sledge Smith over the Sandpapergate scandal of 2018.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Steve Smith fires back at Monty Panesar.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Then, on the eve of the first Ashes Test, Australia’s interim captain brought up Panesar’s ill-fated appearance on UK show Mastermind in 2019, when he butchered several simple answers.
“Anyone that believes that Athens is in Germany .... Oliver Twist is a season of the year, and America is a city, doesn’t really bother me, those comments,” Smith said to the media.
The war of words has seemingly come out of nowhere, and now Panesar has hit back again.
“If I’m guilty of anything, it is having bad general knowledge. And that is better than being a cheat,” Panesar bluntly told the London Telegraph.
He also appeared on BBC Radio 5 and said Smith was obviously still sensitive about the scandal.
“The night before the Test match he’s watching my Mastermind clips, memorising the questions and the answers and it kind of feels like England are already in his head and I can rattle the Aussies from sitting on my sofa,” Panesar said.
“It’s opened up now for the England boys to really go hard at him, play a few mind games with him. It could be that difference where he gets out early and suddenly they’re saying, ‘Thanks Monty’. I know I’m guilty of bad general knowledge, not ball tampering.
“It’s obviously still a sensitive subject for him and I think no one thought he would respond in this way. I suppose he’s clearly trying to deviate from the subject, but still quite a sensitive one for him.”
Panesar played 50 Tests for England between 2006 and 2013.
His original comments came when he appeared on betting site Aceodds.com.
“Ben Stokes and the England team have got to make Steve Smith feel guilty and play on that,” he said.
The remarked sparked immediate backlash, with former Australian wicket-keeper Brad Haddin telling Panesar to pull his “f****** head in”.
Smith, who accepted a 12-month ban for his role in the ball-tampering saga, has never been allowed to forget the darkest moment in his career by opposition fans.
The incident happened during a Test match against South Africa in 2018, and was sparked when a TV camera spotted Cameron Bancroft attempting rough up one side of the ball with sandpaper.
Smith and then vice-captain David Warner were also found to be involved and all three players received hefty sanctions from Cricket Australia.
- With AAP
Originally published on 7NEWS Sport
