Ian Chappell stands for Warner; mocks Smith and CA's double standards

Steve Smith as captain won Adelaide Test vs West Indies

Earlier in the week, Australian star batter David Warner withdrew his application to lift his captaincy ban. The veteran opener used bold words to criticise Cricket Australia and said he is not for "public lynching" and will not let his family be the "washing machine for cricket's dirty laundry".

Various former cricketers - including Michael Clarke - have stood firm and defended Warner's call over CA. However, now, the latest one to be on the southpaw's side is the former Australia captain Ian Chappell, who has praised him and stated that the cricketing board only protect their "own interests", not "those of players".

"It was a wise decision by Warner as CA is renowned for only protecting their own interests, not those of players. Young players should be thankful Warner has exposed CA's tendencies for back-side protecting. They need to keep it in mind for the future," Chappell wrote in his column for ESPNcricinfo.

"Most importantly, though, Warner's withdrawal of his review highlights how appalling the original decision to award him a lifetime leadership ban was.

Further in his column, the former Australia captain also blamed Steve Smith, whose captaincy ban was uplifted by CA, solely for the Sandpaper Gate of 2018. 

"As a captain, it was Smith's job to know what his players were up to. If their motive was illegal, he needed to put a quick stop to any shenanigans."

"Smith's crime was greater than Warner's. So it was no wonder Warner was incensed by his stiff original punishment while others were treated far more leniently," Chappell stated.

Before Pat Cummins was handed ODI's reigns, Warner showed interest in captaining Australia - which was reportedly promoted by the 36-year-old newly signed BBL team, Sydney Thunder. After all that, CA set up a review panel to investigate the former Australian vice-skipper's case.

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