Smith, Warner stand down from Australia captaincy

Australia captain Steve Smith and Vice-captain David Warner have stood down from their respective leadership roles for the remainder of the third Test in Cape Town. 

Wicketkeeper Tim Paine will act as captain at Newlands, with both Smith and Warner taking the field on Sunday.

Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland said: "Following discussions with Steve Smith and David Warner they have agreed to stand down as Captain and Vice-Captain respectively for the remainder of this Test match.

"This Test match needs to proceed, and in the interim we will continue to investigate this matter with the urgency that it demands.

"As I said earlier today, Cricket Australia and Australian cricket fans expect certain standards of conduct from cricketers representing our country, and on this occasion these standards have not been met."

CA chairman David Peever confirmed the board chose Paine, 33, as interim captain. 

"The Board of Cricket Australia has endorsed Tim Paine to step in as Acting Captain for the remainder of this Test," Peever said.

"Both Steve and David will take to the field today under Tim's captaincy.

"The Board fully supports the process for an immediate investigation into what occurred in Cape Town. We regard this as a matter of the utmost seriousness and urgency. We will ensure we have all information available to make the right decisions for Australian Cricket."

Smith’s departure from the Test captaincy comes in the wake of revelations the Australians admitted to ball tampering on day three.

Opening batsman Cameron Bancroft was captured using yellow tape to alter the condition of the ball in the afternoon session on Saturday before hiding the foreign object in his pants once the umpires got wind of the wrongdoing. 

Smith and Bancroft fronted the media after play and confessed the ‘leadership group’ had devised the plan to manipulate the ball, with Smith taking responsibility for the actions of his team and his rookie opening batsman. 

Smith said last night he had not considered standing down as captain, but it appears in the last 12 hours the 28-year-old has had a change of heart. 

On Sunday, the Australian Sports Commission called for CA to stand down Smith as captain, a move the governing body was not prepared to do until due process was carried out.

Sutherland confirmed today in Melbourne CA Head of Integrity and Head of Team Performance Pat Howard would fly to South Africa immediately to conduct a review of the incident.

"It's a very sad day for Australian cricket," Sutherland said.

"That can't be the end of it, we have a responsibility to take this further and to understand more about the issue. 

"We are extremely disappointed and shocked at what we woke up to this morning, and we are dealing with this issue with the utmost urgency and seriousness.

"We certainly don't have all of the evidence at hand and we need someone to go over there and talk to the relevant people involved to understand what happened and the detail, and then we'll make appropriate decisions as to next steps."

Source: cricket.com.au