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Australia captain Michael Clarke dismisses claims of bat tampering

Clarke denies 'cheat' claims
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Michael Clarke insists that not one member of the Australia team has used silicon-based tapes to cheat HotSpot following accusations.

Australia captain Michael Clarke has insisted that he and his teammates are not guilty of tampering with their bats in order to cheat DRS system HotSpot.

According to reports in Australia, players have been accused of using a silicon-based adhesive tape on the edges of their bats in order to prevent HotSpot from detecting when a ball has been nicked.

The accusations followed England batsman Kevin Pietersen's being given out by the umpire during the second innings of the third Ashes Test at Old Trafford, despite HotSpot failing to pick up an edge.

"I find the accusation quite funny," Fox Sports quotes Clarke as saying. "I can't talk for everybody but if it is the case we are talking about cheating, I tell you there is not one person in the Australian changerooms who is a cheat.

"That's not the way we play cricket. I know no one is going to the extreme of saying 'put this on your bat because it will help you beat HotSpot'."

Pietersen reacted angrily to the accusations on Twitter this morning.

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Andrew Strauss on August 20, 2012
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