Sandpaper haunts Australia in Cape Town: South Africa fans wave sandpaper to mock Nathan Lyon on Day 2 of 3rd Test
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Sandpaper haunts Australia in Cape Town: South Africa fans wave sandpaper to mock Nathan Lyon on Day 2 of 3rd Test originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- A South Africa fan waved sandpaper at Australia's Nathan Lyon on the Newlands boundary on Day 2.
- Newlands is the ground where the 2018 ball-tampering scandal took place.
- Lyon ignored the taunt and carried on fielding.
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South Africa fans wave sandpaper at Nathan Lyon in Cape Town
Nathan Lyon spent part of Day 2 fielding on the boundary at Newlands, in front of a crowd that had worked out exactly which prop to bring. A fan held up a sheet of sandpaper and offered it to him, suggesting Australia might find it useful given how little the pitch had done for their bowlers.
Lyon did not take the bait, acknowledging the crowd and getting on with the over. The exchange was filmed from the stands and has been circulating since.
"SOUTH AFRICAN FABS ARE WILD IN TERMS OF TROLLING. A fan was showing a sandpaper to Nathan Lyon and telling him that I would help them as wickets were not falling," one fan account wrote. "Lyon handled the situation perfectly like a professional. These banters are so funny to watch."
SOUTH AFRICAN FABS ARE WILD IN TERMS OF TROLLING
— (@CRICBALLY) October 28, 2026
A fan was showing a sandpaper to Nathan Lyon and telling him that I would help them as wickets were not falling
Lyon handled the situation perfectly like a professional
These banters are so funny to watch
Every Aussie knows the reason for the sandpaper, and the Proteas were not ready for their opponents to forget it throughout the game.
MORE: Starc eclipses Warne's Newlands figures with 6-fer as SA collapse
History of Sandpaper at Newlands, Cape Town
Newlands is where it happened. Cameron Bancroft was filmed using sandpaper on the ball during the third Test of the 2018 series at this ground, a scandal that cost Steve Smith and David Warner 12-month bans, Bancroft nine months, and Darren Lehmann his job as coach.
This series is the first time Australia have played a Test in South Africa since that tour, making the subject unavoidable from the moment the schedule came out. Justin Langer revisited it last week, arguing that Smith, Warner and Bancroft took the fall for cricketers everywhere and that the ball has barely reverse swung since.
Lyon is one of four Australians in this side who played in the Cape Town Test eight years ago, alongside Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins. None of the four was implicated, which is part of what makes him an odd target beyond simply being the man nearest the fence.
MORE: Why Newlands, Cape Town is the apt venue for the SA vs AUS series decider
South Africa's mind games don't seem to be working
From hostile crowds to mocking the 2018 Sandpapergate, South Africa has brought plenty of mental games throughout the series. But so far nothing seems to be working against the Aussies. The fan mocking Lyon with the piece of Sandpaper at Newlands is just the latest act from a series that has tested the Australians on all fronts.
But as Pat Cummins had already mentioned before the series, his team is prepared for most of it. The scoreboard only reinforces that conclusion. Despite Simon Harmer taking two early wickets, dismissing both Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne, Australia have steadied themselves.
From 58/2, the Aussies are now comfortable at 171/2. Both Cameron Green and Matt Renshaw are moving closer to a 100-run partnership, and the Proteas bowling has been unable to remove the two batters. So for all the psychological attacks that the fans thought they would make, the Aussies have made it look like short work.
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