"Australia captain Steve Smith has confirmed his team for Friday's opening Ashes Test but the announcement was overshadowed by an extraordinary verbal attack on Monty Panesar after the former England spinner suggested Ben Stokes and his touring team should try to upset him by rehashing the infamous sandpaper ball tampering controversy of 2018. Smith insisted the comments didn't really bother me, but only having apparently demonstrated the opposite by raking over Panesar's notoriously miserable appearance on the TV quiz Mastermind in 2019."
"Panesar had urged England's players to: Say something like, I don't think it's ethical that he's the captain. I don't think he played the game fairly.' Really get into him and make him feel guilty about it. Make him feel like, They're probably right, I shouldn't be here, I shouldn't be doing this.' This is where the UK media must also focus and put pressure. Use it as a way to help England."
"Who of you in the room has seen Mastermind, and Monty Panesar on that? Any of you? he asked a crowded press conference room. Those of you that have will understand where I'm coming from. And those of you who haven't, do yourself a favour because it is pretty comical. Anyone that believes that Athens is in Germany that's a start. [That] Oliver Twist is a season of the year, and America is a city,"
Australia confirmed its XI for the opening Ashes Test, but attention shifted to a heated exchange over past misconduct. Monty Panesar urged England to unsettle Steve Smith by highlighting the 2018 sandpaper ball-tampering incident and pressing UK media to apply pressure. Smith responded by mocking Panesar's poor performance on the TV quiz Mastermind and dismissing the suggested tactic, saying the comments 'don't really bother me' while seemingly contradicting that claim. Smith also noted a personal change in leadership style, describing himself as more chilled and relaxed as captain compared with his earlier tenure.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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