Monty Panesar fires back at Steve Smith for ‘Mastermind’ comments: ‘Can he look himself in the mirror yet?’ | Cricket
The back-and-forth between Monty Panesar and Steve Smith is showing no signs of slowing down. The former England spinner offered some advice for Ben Stokes’ team, suggesting they target Australia’s stand-in captain Smith and try to get under his skin by referencing the 2018 Cape Town Test, infamous for the Sandpaper Gate. On the eve of the series opener in Perth, Smith reacted to the remarks, as he took a dig at Panesar’s ‘Celebrity Mastermind’ performance.
Monty Panesar hits back at Steve Smith for his ‘Mastermind’ comment.
It is worth mentioning that during his appearance on the BBC Show, Panesar had a night to forget as he ended up giving some wrong answers, such as calling Athens the capital of Germany and labelling America a “city.”
However, Panesar has now hit right back at Smith’s dig, saying he made a mistake on a “quiz show” while Smith made his mistakes in front of the world on a “cricket field.”
Smith, widely regarded as one of the greatest Test batters of this generation, was sacked as Australia’s captain in 2018 for his role in the ball-tampering scandal. He will now be leading the hosts in the first Test of the Ashes in the absence of Pat Cummins.
“To think that he wanted to talk about me before one of the biggest days of his career — when he will lead Australia out against England as he stands in for absent captain Pat Cummins — is flattering, and nothing short of hilarious,” Panesar wrote in his column for the Telegraph.
“I cannot believe he has dug out the old YouTube clip of my shocker and memorised it word by word. I must admit I am delighted to have got so far inside his head, but if I am able to achieve that, imagine how much damage Ben Stokes and his side are going to be able to do once play starts in Perth?” he added.
‘We’ve both made mistakes’
The former England spinner, who played 50 Tests for the country from 2006 to 2013, didn’t take a backward step, saying that while both Smith and he have made some mistakes, they both have to live with them.
“We’ve both made mistakes, but at least mine was on a celebrity quiz show. His was on a cricket field, and we both have to live by them. It seems right now only one of us can,” wrote Panesar.
Panesar further went on to say that he gets a chance to speak to Smith, he would ask the 36-year-old whether he can actually see himself in the mirror after went happened seven years back in Cape Town against South Africa.
“I would actually ask Steve whether he can look himself in the mirror yet and admit that he was part of “sandpapergate”, the worst example of Australian cheating in history. Steve has just displayed a massive weakness and mental vulnerability that, at this level of elite sport, you cannot afford to do,” Panesar wrote.
“Look, we are all cricketers at the end of the day and I had some great days playing for my country, but I also had some shockers. He has had a lot of great days playing for his country but he has had one very big shocker: that day in South Africa in 2018. If I was Jofra Archer, I would be telling him “I’m swinging the ball even without sandpaper!”, or if I was Joe Root I’d be in his ear, “tell us how you do it mate, fine or coarse paper? Tell us the tricks of your trade,” he added.
