But is the price fair and reasonable? Others have been guilty of like behaviour and yet their punishment pales in contrast to Smith. 

In 2001 Sachin Tendulkar was given a suspended one-game sentence for ball tampering in South Africa; in 2000 Waqar Younis was suspended for one game for ball tampering; Michael Atherton was fined $4000 in 1994 for using dirt taken from the pitch while treating the ball; the current South African captain, Faf du Plessis has been twice been involved in ball tampering. On the first of these occasions he interfered with the ball while rubbing it on his zipper. He was hardly suspended for a year – his punishment was the loss of half of his match fee.

By any comparison Smith has suffered public humiliation and financial penalty for a like offence  in a scale that makes the treatment of others pale.

There can be no doubt that his excessive punishment fails the pub test.

Recent released figures state that the federal government is spending a total of $273 billion on health, education, social services and welfare this year.

According to the Australian census there are about 24.77 million people living in Australia. This means on average $11,021 is being spent for each man, woman, child and baby living in Australia on these four areas. Yet the Labor/Greens alternative government wants more money spent on these areas

They have shown their true colours by proposals to increase taxes to pay for it by reducing negative gearing, increasing capital gains tax, increasing superannuation tax, refusing to cut company tax from 30 per cent to 25 per cent to keep Australia competitive to many overseas countries and their latest plan is to confiscate tax returns from tax paid on dividends paid to self-funded retirees.

These self-funded retirees have already paid taxes throughout their working lives and some continue to pay income tax. By not receiving an aged pension a self-funded married couple already saves the federal government $35,058.40 each year.  In addition most self-funded retirees don't get a discount on pharmaceutical benefits, municipal rates and car registration. Yet the Labor /Greens plan is to confiscate the tax paid on dividends owned by self-funded retirees. There is another word for it: theft.

What a lot of conflated hypocritical criticism of our three cricketers.

How many of the firms which have withdrawn their support have never diddled their customers and how many of the commentators have not done much worse.

Australians have always been known as larrikins who have scant respect for petty rules. As Douglas Bader once said: “Rules were made for the guidance of wise men and for the blind obedience of fools”.

This ball-tampering incident is now raised to the level of under-arm bowling and the Fine Cotton affair as a prime examples of sheer blatant cheek. But it has done more – it has affirmed the right of the Australian male to publicly scratch his balls.