WATCH: Steve Smith Rips Into Monty Panesar For Bringing Up Sandpapergate Ahead of Ashes Opener

Steve Smith is known to be a calm individual. Be it while he is batting or even off the field during interviews, press conferences or even interacting with the fans. However, all that went down the drain on November 20 (Thursday), when he responded to comments made by former England spinner Monty Panesar. 

In an interview with Aceodds.com, Panesar said England need to get into Smith's head and make him feel guilty for the role he played in the sandpapergate episode in Cape Town in 2018, which saw the Australia great banned for one year. 

Monty Panesar said England should reignite Sandpaper-gate during the Ashes...

Steve Smith came prepared. 😂 pic.twitter.com/Kspp5nuBXv

— Herald Sun Sport (@heraldsunsport) November 20, 2025

“I’m gonna go off topic for a second here,” Smith, who will lead Australia in the first Test in Perth in Pat Cummins' absence, said as he began to weigh on Panesar's comments.

“Who have you in the room have seen Mastermind and Monty Panesar on that?

“Any of you? Yeah, well, those of you that have, you’ll understand where I’m coming from, and those of you haven’t, do yourself a favour because it’s pretty comical. Anyone that believes that Athens is in Germany, that’s a start; Oliver Twist is a season of the year and America is a city, [it] doesn’t really bother me, those comments.

“That’s as far as I’ll go with that one.”

Smith returned to international cricket in 2019 and had one of the all-time great Ashes the same year in England, where he scored 774 runs at 110.57 in seven innings - 333 runs more than the second-highest run-getter.

Panesar, who has 167 wickets from 50 Tests, asked not just the players, but the British tabloids also to play their part to help England derail Australia. “If it was the opposite, the Australian media would be all over it,” Panesar said. 

“They would have said, if it was any of the English players, ‘The cheaters have arrived’. Right? This is where the UK media must also focus and put pressure. Use it as a way to help England.

“I hope that England uses it as an advantage and don’t just get quiet about it because we know he bats well when he’s captaining Australia.”

England have not won a Test in Australia since 2011. They have lost 13 of the last 15 Tests Down Under. They will have the chance to turn things around in the upcoming series, with the first Ashes Test set to begin on November 21 (Friday) in Perth.