Australia seamer Mitchell Starc, in a statement on his website, has clarified his comments relating to the ball-tampering fiasco. He also revealed that there was strain on relationships, however, the relationships of the “leadership group” that Steve Smith had mentioned during a press conference after the ball-tampering fiasco still remain intact.

Talking about the dangers of ill-advised and ill-prepared press conferences at a ‘Women in Banking and Finance’ forum in Sydney, Starc had said: “Going back to what Sue (a public relation consultant, Sue Cato) said before about being upfront and tackling a problem head on, that's something the group who decided to go into a press conference didn't really think about.

“They obviously didn't see how big the reaction was going to be at that time and then went down the path of not telling the whole truth and then I guess involving another group, which ruined - well, not ruined - but affected other reputations.”

Later, to offer more clarity on the comments, Starc wrote: “Despite reports to the contrary, I continue to have the utmost respect for Steve Smith as captain, team-mate and friend and I look forward to having him back in our great game soon.

“That goes for David and Cameron who have also been through an extremely tough time. It is good to see all three guys planning to be back in cricket soon in different competitions around the world.

“Rebuilding trust and developing a positive reputation will take time and through our actions, we hope to demonstrate this to cricket fans everywhere.

“The process has already started and the focus now should be on the cricket being played and the stories of performance and change in the current series, led by new Aussie coach Justin Langer, captain Tim Paine and the current team over in the UK.”

“It was such a stressful time in our lives. There was strain on relationships both as individuals and as a team. However, the relationships of that group remain very much intact. I look forward to the opportunity to play alongside every one of my team mates from that tour again.

“We still have a long way to go in rebuilding the trust with the Australian public and I know personally, that I am 100 per cent committed to doing that,” he added.

Following the ball-tampering incident in South Africa, Smith had said that the “leadership group” decided to tamper with the ball, but later it became clear that David Warner was the mastermind and the only third guy involved in the incident. None of Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, and Starc – who also belonged to the group mentioned by Smith – were aware of the happenings.