Australian cricketers always maintain their rank in the headlines of news stories either breaking past records or doing scandals. There are so many icons in the Australian Cricket team like David Warner, Pat Cummins, Steve Smith, Marcus Harris, Ricky Ponting, Brad Haddin, Shane Watson, Glane Maxwell, Brett Lee, and Scott Boland.
In this article, here is the list of the most controversial Australian cricketers
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David Warner is a man with a reputation for being aggressive and impulsive. When he got into a fight with Joe Root during the 2013 Champions Trophy, it was the first controversial incident. He had to pay a huge amount as compensation for it. He was left off the Australian team for the Champions Trophy.
After the ball tempering scandal in 2018 during the Australia tour of South Africa, he is now recognized as the mastermind of the entire “Sand Paper Gate” scandal.
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Andrew Symonds:
Andrew Symonds is no doubt the only player in the history of the Australian Team who could compete with David Warner in terms of becoming embroiled in controversy. Symonds, the player of the Australian Cricket Team, had a pretty contentious off-field history that perfectly complemented his exceptional performance on the pitch.
This well-known Australian all-rounder, who was expelled for skipping the team meeting in August 2008 because he went fishing, is first on the list. He was therefore left out of the team that travelled to India. In addition, his agreement with Cricket Australia was soon terminated due to an incident involving alcohol in 2009.
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Shane Warne:
In the history of cricket, Warne is one of the best spinners in the world. That cannot be matched by any other bowler throughout the course of his great career. He was a magician with the ball on the pitch, but off the pitch, he was just as mischievous. for his drinking habits and fancy lifestyle, this marvellous leg-spinner had to pay a fine to the Australian Cricket Board in 1995 for accepting money from bookies. Later, in 2013, he faced a suspension from the BBL due to his physical and verbal confrontation with Marlon Samuels. Moreover, the major low point of his career came when he was excluded from the 2003 ICC World Cup because he tested positive for a drug.
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Mitchell Johnson:
Mitchell Johnson is a left-arm fast bowler and left-handed batsman. From 2005 to 2015, he represented Australia in international cricket. Johnson is considered to be one of the finest fast bowlers of his era. This former bowler was charged 50% of his fees after a dispute with former Indian player Yusuf Pathan in the Legenda League Cricket Match in October 2022 in Jodhpur.
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Cameron Bancroft:
In March 2018, during the third test match against South Africa, the former cricketer’s name was come out as he was also involved in the ball-tampering scandal. He was discovered to be trying to tamper with the ball using sandpaper that he had concealed in his trousers. After this incident, he was banned for nine months from international cricket.
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Mitchell Starc:
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This left-arm fast bowler and left-handed batsman is regarded as one of the best bowlers and in 2015, Starc was the highest-rated bowler in One Day Internationals (ODI) Cricket.
He got into a heated dispute with Kieron Pollard during the IPL 2014 when the latter had changed his stance. This irritated Starc, and as a result, he bowled a bouncer. Even some verbal arguments resulted from it.
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Greg Chappell:
In the 1981 ODI match between Australia and New Zealand, an all-rounder bowler bowled the ball underarm, giving the cricket world quite an unusual experience. When New Zealand required six runs off the final ball to tie the game, then the Australian captain, Greg Chappell, asked his brother, Trevor Chappell, to deliver the ball of his over underarm. Because underarm bowling in an international match had not previously been listed as being illegal, this incident immediately caused the cricket rulebook to alter.
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Steve Smith:
In this era, Smith is regarded as one of the greatest batters in the history of cricket. He is much popular for his excellent performances in test matches.
He was found guilty of involvement in the ball-tampering incident during the Australia tour of South Africa in 2018 during one of these test matches. His career suffered greatly as a result, and he was forced to resign as captain and serve a one-year suspension from international cricket. It seriously marred his reputation.
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Mark Waugh:
In the 1999 World Cup, Waugh gave one of his best performances making Australia win.
He received criticism for speaking with the bookmakers and disclosing crucial match information. Surprisingly, during the 1994 Australia tour of Sri Lanka, this legendary player acknowledged discussing the pitch and the weather with bookmakers.
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Dennis Lillee:
Dennis Lillee was one of the best fast bowlers of world cricket, and is rated as the ‘Outstanding fast bowler of his generation’.
He grabbed everyone’s attention in 1979 when he batted against England at the WACA stadium using an aluminium bat. No cricket rulebook, according to him, specifies that the bat must be made of wood. After many debates, he was eventually persuaded to use a wooden bat. But this will always stand out as one of cricket’s most memorable moments.
Also Read: History And Evolution Of Cricket Balls: From The 18th Century To Today
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