Steve Smith: Deeply hurts to see the condition in which my mum and dad have been

Sydney: Australia cricket captain Steve Smith broke down while addressing a press conference in Sydney on his return from Cape Town on Thursday. Smith, who was involved in a ball-tampering scandal including team mates Cameron Bancroft and David Warner issued an apology for the whole incident.

"To all of my teammates, to fans of cricket and to all Australians who are disappointed and angry, I'm sorry. What happened in Cape Town has already been laid down...I want to make clear, as captain of the Australian cricket team, I take full responsibility. It was a failure of my leadership,” he said.

Cricket Australia previously issued a year long ban for Smith along with Warner, while opener Bancroft was handed a less severe ban of 9 months.

Smith failed to hold back tears when questioned about the effect the whole incident had on his parents.

“To see how my old man and how my mum has been, it hurts. I don't blame anyone. I'm the captain of the Australian team. It's on my watch and I take responsibility for what happened last Saturday. I'm deeply sorry. I love the game of cricket. I love entertaining young kids. I just want to say sorry for the pain I've brought to Australia, to the fans and the public,” he continued.