Johannesburg : South African opener Hashim Amla has come in support of Faf du Plessis and dubbed the ball-tampering allegations against the stand-in skipper as `ridiculous`. Du Plessis was charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for allegedly applying a mint-infused saliva to the ball during fourth day’s play of the second Test against Australia, which concluded in Hobart on Tuesday.
Insisting that du Plessis has done ‘absolutely nothing wrong’, Amla said that his side are standing strong behind their beleaguered captain,Sport24 reported.
“The reason everyone is here is to stand together, really, and to show solidarity. We thought it was actually a joke. It’s not April, but the allegation against Faf was a really ridiculous thing. As a team, we’re standing strong, we’ve done nothing wrong,” said the team’s senior-most batsman Amla, who addressed the media at the MCG on Friday, accompanied by the entire South African squad and support staff.
Amla continued to defend du Plessis and said, “I chew bubble gum while I’m on the field – you want me to brush my teeth after lunch? ..We’re standing out on the field for two hours… there was no malicious intent whatsoever.”
“Is it proven or what? Because that’s something that is really new to us.I’ve had sweets in my mouth, bubblegum in my mouth, butong, nuts. I’m not sure what the big deal is,” he added.
