Former Australia all-rounder Shane Watson believes that the disgraced pair of Steve Smith and David Warner should be allowed to participate in the Big Bash League (BBL).
The former skipper and his deputy were handed one-year bans from international and domestic cricket by Cricket Australia following their roles in the ball-tampering saga that erupted in the tour of South Africa earlier this year.
However, both Smith and Warner have been in the news lately after the duo signed on for the inaugural Global T20 Canada league which got underway in Toronto on Thursday.
Smith slammed a half-century for the Toronto Nationals in his very first game since the infamous tour of South Africa and Watson believes Smith should be promoting the BBL rather than a foreign league.
“The thing that just disappoints me about the whole situation is now Steve Smith and Dave Warner are promoting other tournaments by playing in them,” Watson was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.
Smith smashed a fifty in his very first match in the Global T20 Canada.
“I understand the rulings that happened at Cricket Australia, the 12-month bans and all the stipulations they put around that.
“But for them to have the opportunity to go and promote other tournaments, I’d prefer if they’re going to do that and have access to do that (that) they have access to promote the Big Bash, for example.”
Watson, 37, who recently enjoyed a fine campaign with IPL winners Chennai Super Kings, believes Smith and Warner will play key roles in the 2019 World Cup for Australia despite their bans.
“At the moment we’ve got a few world-class players and we’ll continue to discover those but they don’t just fall out of trees. That’s why Steve and Dave are such an integral part to Australian cricket, especially in the shorter format as well with the World Cup coming up,” he stated.
