Australia captain Steve Smith was banned for one match by the International Cricket Council on Sunday for his role in a ball-tampering plot in the ongoing third test in South Africa but Cameron Bancroft, the player who did the tampering, avoided a suspension.
Smith admitted "he was party to a decision to attempt to change the condition of the ball in order to gain an unfair advantage," the ICC said after Smith confessed to hatching a plan, apparently with at least one other unnamed senior player, to cheat in the match against South Africa. Smith was also fined his entire match fee, cricket's governing body said.
He will now miss the fourth and final test in Johannesburg, where Australia is likely to be up against it and playing to save the series.
"I acknowledge that Cameron has accepted responsibility for his actions by pleading guilty to the charge and apologizing publicly," said match referee Andy Pycroft. "As a young player starting out in international cricket, I hope the lessons learned from this episode will strongly influence the way he plays the game during the rest of his career."