Internet Desk: Proteas stand in skipper Faf Du Plesis, who led his team to a historic test series win against Australia finds himself in trouble following a video in which he is seen applying saliva to the ball.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) would be reviewing footage of the South African captain, which showed him applying saliva to the ball with what is presumably a candy in his mouth.
The video footage came into light on Wednesday, just a day after the conclusion of the match, which South Africa won by an innings and 80 runs, and won the series in process.
“The ICC has been alerted to the footage and is currently reviewing the incident from the perspective of it being a possible breach of the ICC Code of Conduct,” an ICC spokesperson told ESPNcricinfo.
The footage was not reported by match officials within the stipulated 18 hours after the game. The cricket governing body now has five days from the close of play on Tuesday i.e. till Sunday to charge the South Africa skipper.
This is not the first time Du Plessis is involved in a ball tampering incident. In 2013, he was fined 50 per cent of his match fee for ball-tampering in the second test against Pakistan.
He was caught on camera rubbing the ball against a zip on his pocket on the third day of the match in Dubai, which led umpires Ian Gould and Rod Tucker to penalise the South African team five runs and change the ball.